Don't Call It a Comeback
by FearfulFan1987
Summary: After committing the worst crime in Melromarc, the Three Heroes vote to put the Shield Demon to death. But death is only a state of being, at least when you have a goddess on your side. Now back with a vengeance, Naofumi must set the timeline as close to the original as possible. He must do all of that, without being discovered by the others. OP Naofumi. .
1. Execution

AN

Hello to all you readers! Welcome to my FIRST EVER OFFICIAL FANFICTION STORY!

That sentence itself can (and probably will) cause doubts to be formed and expectations to be lowered. That might be true. BUT FEAR NOT! For I will absolutely, positively try my very best at writing this story. I have had some drafts about other fandoms written before but, because of the lack of experience and the plain cringe-worthy content they contained, they were all deleted on my Google Docs.

The summer is about to end and I'll be entering my senior year in high school. If this first chapter does well, I'll probably update within a month. (Depends if I want to write the skeleton of a chapter in the dead of night...)

Anyway, if you read this far and hasn't skipped the Author's note like I usually do, then congratulations are in order. Now, onward to the story.

AN OVER

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_CHINCK_

The blade of the guillotine fell and sliced at the neck of the newly summoned criminal. The sound of metal cutting swiftly through flesh was miraculously heard over the cheers and jeers of the noblemen and common folk alike.

The King sat on his throne complacently. Everything had gone according to the plan. His eldest daughter had joined the demon's party, feed off of him like a lamprey, then turned her back on him and condemn him of the worst crime in Melromarc. It was simple but, for the naive hero, it was foolproof. The ignorant bafoon had fallen right for the trap suspecting nothing until the very last moment.

But Autcray wasn't the only one to orchestrate the scheme. The idea had come from the Pope, the religious leader of the most prominent religion in the country. While his wife, the Queen, was away at the international conference, the Pope had come to the King with an idea to use this time of vulnerability to summon the cardinal heroes. At first, the King refused, believing that this would only pit the other nations of the world against Melromarc and its people. But the Pope had put his worries to rest when he displayed a new prophecy. This prophecy stated that only 3 heroes were needed to quell the waves of catastrophe. Should the other countries, especially the demi-human nations, declare war on Melromarc, they would simply show the prophecy to the public and one by one, the nations would quickly call off the war effort.

Even after all of this, if Siltvelt and Shieldfreedon, maintain their indignant behavior towards Melromarc, they wouldn't so absentminded to attack the country with the ONLY remaining heroes. Well, the mindless half- beasts would still harbor resentment, but with the 3 heroes on Melromarc's, they couldn't do anything. No one could.

On the opposite side of the courtyard stood the before mentioned religious leader. He was an old man with a deceiving gentle smile. Here he stood in the midst of history being written. None of his predecessors have accomplished anything this monumental. Not even the founder. But he had. And by the grace of the Holy God, he stood proud at that idea.

Those repulsive demis and their false god didn't belong in the future he envisioned. With this execution, his goal of a holy and righteous crusade is now one step closer. All thanks to the poetic irony of the Shield Demon.

* * *

Sitting amongst the nobles were the remaining three heroes. Each wore their own respective color, as to match the colored jewels on their weapons. Their own parties had attended the execution aswell. Most, if not all, had joined the crowds jeering of the headless cadaver. Even after the blade dropped, they continued to insult the dead hero. Their animosity knew no bounds.

The first hero was, undoubtedly the best-looking one. His blonde hair and red eyes, made him stand out in his native land of Japan. But that just made him even more irresistible to the college girls he surrounded himself with. He was and probably will always be a player. In one of his hands, he held the Cardinal Spear Weapon. It was a weapon of hidden power capable of astonishing feats. On the other hand, he held the victim of the criminal's actions. Her red hair and green eyes seemed to be in disarray. The trauma and exhaustion of the night's events were taking a toll on her. But that didn't hinder her ability to press her sizeable _assets_ against his bicep.

This was Motoyasu, the Cardinal Spear Hero.

The woman hanging off of him was Myne. Myne had originally joined Motoyasu's party in the beginning but then volunteered to join the criminal's party out of pity of his isolation. But then that very night, that hero had barged into Myne's room in a drunken stupour and took advantage of her. She ran to Motoyasu for help. He, being a White Knight that can give Natusuki Subaru a run for his money, believed her story wholeheartedly. How could he not? There she was, an injured maiden comes begging for his help. Any other sensible man in his place would have helped her in her time of despair.

_Death is a punishment too light for him. Scum like him needs to suffer the same fate he gave her._

His morbid thoughts were interrupted when Myne again pushed her chest into his arm. He grinned and tighten his hold on her.

He did it. Only two days in this Isekai adventure and he got what he wanted.

To become the hero of this story and to get his girl.

Well, a couple _more_ girls couldn't hurt...

* * *

16\. He witnessed his first execution at 16. How many more would he see? How many more will he condemn? He voted for his death, and yet, it didn't feel right. Unlike Pontius Pilate, he didn't wash his hands. _His_ blood was on his hands.

_He deserved it. He raped his own party member._

The inner thoughts of the Sword Hero echoed in his mind. He wanted to believe that he deserved it but, was he really tried and convicted? Where was the evidence? Where was the fair and just ruling of the King? Too many questions popped up in Ren's mind that he was left in a daze.

Ren shook those thoughts away. He was in another world for god's sake. He should more worried about himself than someone who is already dead. It's simply too late now.

_What if...?_

That thought would come back to haunt him

* * *

Itsuki shouldn't feel giddy. He shouldn't. It was wrong. Someone just DIED.

But he did anyway.

He couldn't help but feel giddy. Was he summoned to this world to deliver justice to criminals? Was he brought here to be this country's, no this WORLD'S vigilante of justice? He was almost certain that he was. And it all started with this trial.

At first, it looked like a scene out of his favorite show, Order and Law: Victims Special Unit. But the emotion in Myne's voice and eyes, her whole demeanor was just too REAL to be like that VT show. He knew then and there that she was telling the truth. This was his chance. To gain recognition as the Hero who helped bring down a criminal and to begin his self-righteous frenzy.

He took it without hesitation.

He will be the harbinger of justice. He will be the Hero that this world deserves AND needs.

_Pretty sure I read that in a comic somewhere..._

_But most far trials revolved around both sides presenting their arguments and evidence._

Well, All the Shield had been his own words. Who was he to believe, the oppressed victim, or the accused (and guilty) criminal? Take your time, you'll figure it out.

And besides...

It's only fair for _him_ to feel the sensation of death just as they did...

* * *

Unbeknownst to everyone in the courtyard, a cloaked figure was silently watching the execution. Her face remained stoic when the blade dropped. She had seen so much death and personally delivered it that it didn't faze her. Not anymore.

Her Majesty had sent her to the Capital to keep an eye on the King. Her orders were to comeback within weekly intervals or immediately should an emergency arise.

This was certainly one of those cases.

After watching for a few more seconds, the Shadow lept of the tiled rooftops with elegance and grace.

She landed on the ground, looked back at the courtyard's outer walls and vanished into the darkness.

* * *

_Again._

Many miles away, a heavy fog lifted from the hidden ruins. Many buildings, or what was left of them, have been untouched since their destruction. They have served their old purpose. Now they only served as scars from the stories that were never told. A young girl, who resembled an angel, seemed to be the only living being in the area.

The young girl was kneeling down, looking into a lake. While her outside appearance was youthful, her eyes were anything but.

To the average person, she seemed really young. Around the age of 14 if they had to guess. But looks can be extremely deceiving.

She felt it again. The death of another hero. It hasn't even been 3 days and one of them was already killed. She was a failure to the master she could barely remember.

Having decided to move forward with her orders, she stood up. The waves would substantially become more difficult if one of the heroes has died. All four of the heroes are needed to fight off the waves. It would be nigh impossible for them to fully stop the waves as of now.

_It's better to start from scratch than to bet the entire world on 3/4s of their power._

"Not yet Fitoria."

The now dubbed Fitoria looked over her shoulder seeing a figure in a dark blue cloak. She couldn't tell if it was a man or a woman. Its voice was distorted, not sounding masculine nor feminine. But she knew who it was.

"Why not? A hero has passed. The other three won't be enough to fight the waves. There is still time to summon other heroes before the next wave."

The figure chuckled, having known Fitoria for many years, it grew accustomed to her..._antics._

"Becuase, he hasn't died. Not for long at least."

The Queen of Filoials only raised an eyebrow. "What plans does your goddess have for him?"

" Many plans. Many plans indeed. You, among all the other inhabitants to this world, will witness the rising of the True Hero. There is no need to fulfill your..._duties._"

Noticing her lack of resistance, he looked up to the night sky and vanished.

With that being defusing the situation, and the confirmation of the heroes resurrection, Fitoria sat back down. She too looked at the night sky, but instead of teleporting, she simply held her hands in prayer fashion and whispered "Take care of him, goddess. This world will need him soon."

The fog settled over the ruins once again, Fitoria disappearing with it.

* * *

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SO? HOW WAS IT? GOOD? BAD? ABSOLUTELY BUTTFUCKEN STUPID?

BE HONEST, I WON'T JUDGE. HELL BE A CRITIC AND GO NUTS. But constructive criticism is very much appreciated. I want to at least try and make people happy and if you write suggestions that I think are good, then I could incorporate that in the story, I'll even give you a shout out (as very minute it is).

So yah. We got a fuckboy who thinks with his _"spear" _too much, an indecisive Chunibyo, and a deranged vigilante in the making.

Sounds...

**INTERESTING**

But if you are just waiting for this scrub to git gud, then I recommend reading the following:

Iratewritereviewer- The Original

Ryujin Maou- Shall I show you a True Shield?

RLTygurr- The Shielded Savior

ByteofBacon- Twinning (Both the original and the rewrite)

These are my personal favorite Shield Hero fanfics as of 9/21/19. But if you are curious if there are any more, well you'll have to do your own exploring. As of the previously stated date, there are many stories that have so much potential, and I absolutely, positively, 100% hope that they thrive and gain recognition within this fandom.

Thank you so much for choosing to read this fic and give this newb a chance to write about something he enjoys. The possibility of positive feedback will keep me going.

See you all next time.

Fearfan1987 out.


	2. True Isekai

**I don't own Rising of the Shield Hero. All the characters are owned by Aneko Yusagi. I highly recommend reading the Light Novels and even the Web Novels. They are a good read.**

**WHAT THE FUCK IS UP EVERYONE?**

**I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of Don't Call it a Comeback. I found myself enjoying editing it as often and as well as I could at midnight.**

**I will try to update this story once a week. 4 days of writing, 2 days of editing, publish. I get out of school an hour earlier than my sister so I write the chapters in the quiet atmosphere of the library. Who knew the library could be so peaceful and calm?**

**Naofumi will become overpowered. He will be able to attack on his own via shields from certain media and counter-attacks (*Cough* Captain America's Shield *Cough*) (-w-)**

**The goddess is introduced in this chapter and no it's not Medea. OK!? She comes later. Hopefully.**

**Anyway onto the story!**

* * *

For being a dead man, Naofumi was feeling too much.

His senses were on overdrive, or at least that's what he thought. Everything was moving in slow motion. Tiny particles of some white debris were floating in the air. He tried to touch one but they just backed away. It was as if he and the debris were positively charged magnets. He just stopped trying after 2 minutes with no success.

"Uhhh… Hello?"

Naofumi tried to call out, asking if anyone was there with him. For the first 30 seconds, there was no response. But then a voice that was strong yet soft spoke out.

"Ara Ara Naofumi-kun."

Naofumi's eyes widen in surprise but then in panic. He quickly looked over his own body again just to make sure he didn't look like a twelve-year-old lost in public. After confirming he wasn't reincarnated as a shota, he let out a sigh of relieve.

"HAHAHAHA! You shoulda seen your face. It was hilarious!" The voice started as distorted but then became comprehensible. Naofumi frantically looked for the source of the voice, but he couldn't pinpoint its location.

"Over here."

The voice spoke again but this time, instead of sounding like it is coming from a surround sound system, it came from one direction. Naofumi looked in that direction and saw the most beautiful face in his life. The mysterious woman had a playful smile on her face. Her whole aura was just leaking levity. With the joke she pulled on Naofumi, it was obvious she had a sense of humor.

"Who are you?"

" I am your creator Naofumi-kun."

" Wait, you're God!"

"No".

"Buddha?"

"No..."

"Tet?"

"Wrong Iskeai-"

" AQUA!?"

"Now that is just offens-"

"There's no way you're the Flying Spaghetti Monster..."

" NO, I'm none of those deities!"

"Good, I wasn't much into Pastafarianism anyway."

"Anyway, I am your creator. As your creator, I had your life planned out before you were conceived. But this... this was not your path. You weren't meant to die."

" Well clearly" Naofumi pointed to his neck which had a scar encompassing the circumference of his neck. "I died. Can you explain that oh omnipotent goddess...?" He trailed off not knowing her name.

Luckily she took the social cue. "Oh, Pardon me. Where are my manners? I am Aneko Yusagi. I am the goddess of this world. You, Naofumi, are quite literally my creation."

" But you said you're the goddess of THIS world, not the one I came from? How could you have created me?"

" You, Naofumi, are my latest story! You are the only one to have met me in person. You're my favorite!"

" Uhhh... thanks?"

"Ahem... back to the subject at hand. You were not supposed to die. Your original story would have you live on as a pariah. You would start at nothing but then reclaim your life, title, and dignity. Now that is impossible. If only there was someone who was powerful enough to resurrect you! OH, THE HUMANITY!" She said theatrically.

"ಠ_ಠ" All Naofumi could do was stare at her. Was she, an all-powerful goddess, trying to implore him to be revived? Why would he want that? That world had turned its back on him the very second he was summoned. Why shouldn't he do the same?

"You can revive me?" he questioned.

" Oh, of course, I can. I am a goddess. Just give me a minute to make a carbon copy of your body."

" Wait, wait, Woah, Woah Woah, slow down professor! Who says I want to be revived? Why would I help those who condemned me to death? They can burn in hell for all I care."

Aneko just chuckled, a smug smile appearing on her face. "I knew you would say that. That is why I can _give_ you something worth fighting for."

Before Naofumi could question her, he vision starting fading to black. Seconds later, he was out like a light.

* * *

When Naofumi had reawakened, he saw that his surroundings had changed. He was no longer in what he called "Purgatory" but in a cave. The cave was dimly lit by the light green crystals that were formed in the stone.

He was interrupted when a two-headed monster let out its dying roar after being stabbed in the chest. He looked at the source of the sound, only to see him and a young girl barley surviving the dog monster's attack. His doppelganger was injured, sustaining a bite wound to his shoulder. The wound was bleeding profusely, but strangely enough, it began to heal at an accelerated pace.

_"Nice job kid." His twin said to the girl._

_Tears started to fall out of the girl's eyes before she came hurtling towards him. " Master Naofumi!" she exclaimed. She enveloped him in a hug like the scared child she was._

_"Careful! Even with this shield power, this wound still hurts like hell."_

_"Promise me you won't ever die! Don't leave me alone Master Naofumi, please!"_

Even though this was a vision, the original storyline, Naofumi could hear his doppelganger's thoughts.

_She's chosen my name._

Chosen? What does he mean by that? Was there some kind of agreement where she could choose what to call him? And who is she? Why was he alone with a... her? Why was she with him to begin with?

But then he saw her slave collar.

_Oh, I have a slave. That's nic- I HAVE A SLAVE? What the fuck happened to me in that timeline? _Naofumi thought.

"_You attack, and I'll defend. That way neither of us has to worry about dying."_

The scene had changed.

Naofumi reappeared the same courtyard he had been executed in. It was night time, as the only source of light came from the lit torches that hung from the walls. He surveyed his surroundings, getting irritated that this was the third time today that he was taken to an unknown location. However, he stopped dead in his tracks when his eyes were facing the center of the courtyard.

The Trash King and Bitch along with the other heroes were at the center of the arena-like-courtyard. The same girl from before was at the center of it all. She was just older.

_How much time has passed since the last vision?_ Naofumi internally thought. The other heroes didn't seem any older but the demi-human girl grew, many years by the looks of things.

The young woman was walking towards him. Her pink eyes filled with determination the closer she got to him. But she just passed through him, as if he were a ghost. He turned around and saw himself crouched down on the ground. He knew himself better than anyone. He could tell that he went through some bullshit. He could also tell that somehow Bitch had caused his grief, given the shit-eating grin on her face.

Why wasn't he feeling anything? He should be feeling a fucking raging conflagration of hatred and fury at the moment, but he wasn't. Why?

_"Master Naofumi?"_

_"Why'd you come back? You're free now."_

_"But I-"_

_"I don't need a traitor. Get lost!"_

_" I heard what they're saying. They said you did terrible things and you forced yourself on a member of your party and lied about it."_

His doppelganger's eyes widened.

_" And yet I know now, I believe you would never do such a thing."_

_"I DIDN"T DO IT!" _His voice broke through her's, further denying the allegations laid so heavily against him.

"_Master Naofumi-"_

_"JUST STAY AWAY!"_

_" Please, you have to listen to me!"_

The demi-human approached him trying to console Naofumi, but he wouldn't allow it. No, he wouldn't accept it.

_"DON'T TOUCH ME!" _He said as he knocked her hands back with excessive force. The young woman was knocked back in shock. He continued to vent all his frustrations verbally.

_"THANKS TO YOUR SAVIOR, MOTOYASU, YOUR FREE NOW! GO! I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!" _he paused before continuing. _"Or are you just hanging around to get one last look at the losers face!?"_ he accused her. After receiving a non-verbal affirmation, he pleaded desperately. _"Please just leave me alone!"_

The defeated Naofumi continued to portray his cynical attitude to the only person who believed him. Even if he doubted her, she will always be by his side. He just wasn't paying attention when she told him. His mind was clouded by dark thoughts and mindless anger towards everyone in the world. The transparent Naofumi could see a flame slowly growing from the green jewel in the shield. Naofumi could only think about what would happen if the flame overtook his shield or even worse, himself.

The demi-human then wrapped Naofumi in a hug. An odd glow engulfed the two for a moment.

_"Master Naofumi, I bet know you better than anyone else in this world. I know how kind you are. So even if the whole world speaks ill of you, I'll tell them they're wrong. I'll defend you and remind them of all you've done. You're the one that saved my life, gave me a sword, and showed that I had a purpose in life. I'll always be your sword and always be standing beside you, no matter what."_

At this, the suffering Naofumi had tears welling up at the corners of his eyes. What his former slave had said had touched Naofumi's soul with sincerity and affection. During her speech, the flame had started to die down. Seeing both Naofumi's reaction and her speech's effect on the legendary weapon, she continued to deliver the final push needed to bring her old master back.

_"This is a world where it is hard to find people to trust but I know I can trust you. Because you saved my life Master Naofumi. I really do trust you."_

Past Naofumi was brought back to the harsh reality he was forced to live in. But having her by his side, he knew he would live on just for her. To defend this world just for her. To become a hero just for her.

_"Please, please allow me to still stand by your side. I need you, and you need me. We're a team."_

The dam broke. Her words had finally commanded his tears to fall. Seeing that her master needed comfort, she pulled him towards her chest, and he started sobbing. But she held on, knowing that many times before, the roles had been reversed. It was her time to comfort him.

The real Naofumi was touched and all but, something was bothering him. "_Where the fuck is that music coming from?" _He thought to himself.

The real Naofumi looked back to the group in the arena. The Trash King only looked at the duo with contempt. Bitch was looking at the duo with a look of disgust. Not wanting to waste anymore "precious" time, the Trash King started leaving for the stairs, clearly fed up with the waste of time this fight was. He was expecting a landslide victory by the Spear Hero but was let down. He needed to have his daughter intervene in the fight just to get his way and bring the demon down. Bitch soon followed.

Heartless Bastards.

The other heroes were still there by the time the royal family left. They were discussing something, but Naofumi didn't find that important enough to pay attention to. Was this the purpose of Aneko's visions? Did she purposefully show him the original timeline to convince him to stay and fight? Because if that were the case, then she no longer needed to show him these moments from a forsaken timeline.

"Alright, enough. I get it. You win. I'll fight." Naofumi said before blinking back into purgatory. He looked at himself and the demi-human pair one last time before he left.

He would set it right. He would make sure to fight for her. As she so fervently fought for him.

* * *

" SO, since you decided to change your mind, you'll be reincarnated. Just give me a few moments to make your new body." Aneko said after Naofumi blinked back into purgatory.

_Wow. being summoned isekai and reincarnated isekai. Now all I need is to get godlike powers and no emotions. Then I'll be the most generic isekai trash. No wait, that's SAO. My Bad. _Naofumi thought to himself.

" So what, you revive me and I just fight the waves alongside the other heroes. Do you expect me to be all lovey-dovey with them? The whole Forgive and Forget bullshit?" He asked cynically.

" Come on. I'm a goddess, not a super-smart one but even I know that won't work. Not with you." she answered. " The passage of time is different in purgatory. Naofumi, it has been roughly a week since you were executed. With your death, the Kingdom of Melromarc is putting a Total War's worth of resources behind the 3 heroes. They have already reached level forty, and are continuing to rise. You will be severely outmatched and outclassed if you were to jump back into the fray as you are now. So as this whole experience demonstrated, some divine intervention will be needed."

"Divine Interve- wait. Are you going to give me some overpowered skills to even the playing field?" Naofumi asked with excitement in his voice.

"No." She gave a simple response. This caused him to deflate for a moment before she continued. " I'm going to give you some overpowered skills to give you the advantage. What kind of creator am I if I couldn't give you what you desire Naofumi-kun?"

" Well first things first, what I desire-"

"Is to attack on your own, kill Trash and Bitch, nice names by the way, and to not have that _useless_ shield. Am I correct?" she said with a knowing smile on her face.

"Yeah, that about covers it."

"Well, I can do the first now, the second is completely your own future decisions, and the third won't happen. Do you KNOW how many copies of your story I have sold? It would be a complete waste of resources and time to change the title! It's 6.2 million, for your information." She said.

"Meh, 2/3 isn't that bad. So What am I getting!" He asked excitedly.

"Naofumi Iwatani, I, Aneko Yusagi bestow upon you the power to attack. Your main attack damage will come from this guantlet. " she said seriously as she blessed Naofumi. She then pulled a military brown gauntlet that had a side compartment attached to the forearm. " This Naofumi, is the Doo-"

"THE DOOMBLADE! HA HA HA HA! YES! FUCK YES!" Naofumi jumped up and down like a kid on Christmas morning. " THANK YOU, GODDESS! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!" He hugged her passionately.

You see, Naofumi was summoned on January 9th, 2019. He was transported before DOOM Eternal came out. He was there at Quakecon just for the next DOOM announcement. He was most excited about the glory kills with the famously dubbed Doomblade. But because he was summoned here, he would probably never play it. Ever. But this would make up for it.

" Can I get the Praetor Suit too? Can I? Can I? PLEASE!" He begged, even going into a dogeza for added measure. But the goddess was undeterred.

"Nope. No way. Do you know how many favors I had to call in to not get copyright lawsuits for this very moment? BUT, it can change appearance at will. You can even-"

"Make it look like the Infinity Gauntlet?"

"Which one? The one Thanos had, or the one Iron Man made?"

"What?"

" Yeah, the one that Iron Man made to get bring back the people who died in Infinity War. Man, he was such a great character. Too bad he died in the end."

Naofumi was frozen in shock. His eyes widen. Endgame's trailer only came out a couple of weeks before he got isekai'd. He knew that RDJ's contract was up, but he didn't want to believe it. He got spoiled. BIG TIME.

He started shaking. The first time he felt emotion since he died. Why? He would ask later but now, he had a goddess to kill.

"Goddess... did it ever occur to you that I never watched Endgame?" He said with barely restrained anger. A black miasma was emanating from his person as he slowly walked towards the goddess.

Fearing the man she spoiled the biggest movie of his lifetime, she started sweating copiously. She held her hands up in surrender and started backing away slowly. The look in his eyes promised death to anyone in eyesight. She just happened to be the only person with him. Her eyes darted around looking frantically for any form of escape.

"Now, Noafumi, le-le-let's talk about this..."

"Oh no no no Yusagi, there is nothing to talk about. You have made your bed. Now DIE IN IT!"

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" The sound of her screams echoed in the seemlessly endless void of nothingness.

* * *

" Finished your temper tantrum...? The defeated goddess said childishly with a pout. That pout would have smitten any man but Naofumi had returned to his temporary kuudere state.

Naofumi just walked up the goddess and promptly flicked her forehead. "Now I am." She pouted some more.

"Before you so rudely interrupted me... I was saying that it can take on any appearance. The blade isn't for show either. Its a retractable blade made from a titanium and mithril alloy. It is nigh unbreakable. Only those with the absolute power of metals can stand a chance at breaking it. You can retract it at will. Normally the Legendary weapons will not allow this but, I have made an exception. Also, it is technically armor." she reasoned.

"Alright, this can't be the only gift your giving me. You did say skills._ Skills._ As in more than one."

"Greedy little bastard aren't cha?" Aneko teased playfully.

"Yeah, yeah, just give me my gifts."

"I present to you, the second gift. " She then procured a cloth pouch. As she moved it around, he heard the unmistakable sound of metal clanking against metal. " I would open that when you get back if I were you. The wait will be worth it, but let's just say, it contains some metals from the periodic table of fictional elements. Others are not on that list but still fictional."

"Oh please, goddess. Tell me it's there. Tell me it's in there. TELL ME!" Naofumi hoped one of the most famous fictional metal from his world is in that bag. The doomblade was amazing, but if what he thought was in there, was actually in there, he would create a religion centered around Aneko.

"Where is the fun in that. Tehehe! Now, time is almost up. Time for the last gift!" She said urgently.

His dreams have almost come true. What would Naofumi get? A break-action revolver? A set of rings? He wanted something cool, something amazing. Something that could top the doomblade and the bag of metals. What would it be?

"You will receive my blessing. The blessing entails a set of powers that will give you the advantage against the strongest enemies. Because I am a true god, my blessing could theoretically overpower another goddess's blessing. You'll need that, should you succeed in your task."

" Wait, there are other-" he was interrupted.

" With this blessing, you'll be able to combine shields. But most importantly you'll need to- OOPS! You're out of time. You have to go now. But don't worry, we'll keep in touch. Now you best be going." she opened a portal and started pushing Noafumi towards it.

"Wait, goddess! I have one question. Who was that demi-human girl?"

"Oh her? Her name is Raphtalia. And she is technically only 10 years old. Good Luck!"

"Wait, WHAT!"

"Talk to you soon!" She said with one final push. He lost his balance and fell through the portal.

"Raphtalia huh?" Naofumi asked as he was wormed holed away. Now, _this_ is a true isekai adventure. A boom echoed around Naofumi. A shock wave soon followed.

The Shield Hero was reintroduced to the world.

* * *

Aneko had just pushed Naofumi into the portal. She stopped, looked around and grinned. She then bursted into laughter. If someone saw there, they would surely think she was insane. It didn't matter. For her plan was already into action. "He is on his way Medea. You and your army of reincarnators can't stop him now." Not this time.

After her insanely gleeful laughing session, the goddess had to go back to her duties. She huffed. "Back to controlling the universe, I guess." she said tiredly.

"Good luck, True Hero." She then teleported away to an unknown location.

* * *

The shadow ran as fast as she could. Faubrey was only 30 minutes away, and she had to get to her majesty. But a small obstacle had manifested itself to stop her. The Three Heroes Church had found out there were Shadows in the Capital, specifically the courtyard. So to stop the news from reaching the Queen, they had called their best agents back into service. A group them were gaining on her.

She had to sidestep a knife that was thrown from behind. With the Shadow so close to reaching her mistress, the agents grew desperate. They had started to attack.

She started to use evasive maneuvers to dodge the incoming onslaught of piercing projectiles. Arrows, knives, darts and even spears were thrown but she was not hit. Not even skimmed. She continued to run into the forest surrounding Faubrey. The agents followed her into the dark woods. The only guide they followed was the light of the mon and their faith in God.

They lost sight of her. They then spread out to find her. But that was the worst thing they could ever do.

One agent was silently walking when a throwing knife had found its way to his throat. He died on the spot.

Another had been waiting in the tree with a bow drawn. The feeling of a metal wire had alerted the agent but it was too late. He decapitated corpse had fallen from its perch.

One by one, the best agents the Three Heroes Church were dropping like flies. A total of 15 confirmed kills. One agent was left. And he saw the shadow. Before he could terminate her, a knife was thrown, grazing his left arm. He shouted in anger and ran after her.

He chased her for what seemed like forever, wasting his knives in fruitless attempts to finish her.

They soon reached the end of the forest. A cliff was preventing the shadow's exit. The agent grinned. He had her now. "I'm going to enjoy killing you. Your death will grant me entrance into God's kingdom."

"Your "God" had abandoned your church since it's founding!" She retorted back emotionlessly.

"YOU HERETIC! BLASPHEMY!" He yelled as he charged at her. She dodged but didn't fight back. She didn't need to. " I'll kill you if its the last thing I do!" He exclaimed.

"But you're already dead."

"What!?"

The agent looked down as he saw what she meant. A knife was embedded in his chest. A metal wire was attached to the end of the hilt. The wire had been hooked to a small lever.

_Oh no. _The agent thought.

The shadow tugged the wire and the blade split into 3, slicing through bone and vital organs alike. The agent was dead before he hit the ground.

The first blade that had grazed his arm had been laced with a fast-acting numbing agent. Once the anesthetic had entered the bloodstream through the brachial artery, it would travel throughout the torso numbing any pain he might feel. She threw the knife at him while he was chasing her, but he never realized it. He was too focused on his mission. Too focused on killing her.

"If you want to kill the best, you'll need to be the best." The Shadow told the cadaver with no emotion in her voice. She started at the body for some time before she took off running towards Faubrey.

* * *

Queen Mirellia sat in the guest chambers of the Faubrey Castle massaging her temples. The last 2 weeks have been torture. She spent the better part of 5 days negotiating with the other world's superpowers for the rights to summon a Cardinal Hero. It was agreed that Faubrey would summon the first hero, followed by Shieldfreeden, Siltvelt and them Melromarc. A day didn't even pass when news that Melromarc had summoned all four heroes was made international. She was forced to stay in Faubrey to try to make peace with the other nations. After another week of negotiating, it was finally time to head back.

Her daughter Melty had been with her the entire time. As the next in line for the throne, Mirellia thought it would be good for Melty to observe international politics. They were both in the room, about to leave when they heard a knock on the door.

"Enter."

The door opened to reveal her best espionage agent walked in before bowing. "You're here early. Has something happened?"

"I'm afraid so your majesty. I bring grave news from the Capital."

Mirelia looked at her daughter, deciding whether to leave her in the room for this kind of conversation or to excuse her from the room entirely. She decided to leave her in the room. "What does this grave news entail, Shadow?"

"The Shield Hero, My Lady."

A feeling of uneasiness had washed over Mirellia. While the late lord of Seyaette wasn't in charge of her country, she trusted her husband to run things smoothly until she came back. That trust s now cracking. Doubts started to form when all four heroes had been summoned. She knew the hatred her husband felt towards the Shield in general. But if something happened to the Shield Hero after all the time spent on negotiating about the heroes, she swore she would be a widow by the end of the year.

" You may speak. Report to your Queen." She put on airs of confidence, but deep down, she was worried.

" Princess Malty has accused the Shield Hero of sexual assault. King Aultcray had acted under the law and had him put to death. He then gave the body to the Three Heroes Church for propaganda usage.."

A silence had filled the room. All faith in her husband and eldest daughter had been blasted in oblivion. All the frustration and anger that had been pent up and bottled within the last two weeks, were reaching their tipping point.

"Was... there... a... trial...?" She asked slowly, trying her hardest to keep her composure.

"Hardly. All that was given was Malty's testimony and the king convicted him a criminal. After the ruling, the king then turned to the three heroes and told them that such actions would usually result in death. The Spear hero demanded capital punishment, and he was soon followed by the Bow hero. The Sword hero also decided after some time."

Queen Mirellia could no longer contain her anger. All the work that she had put in was all for not. She had promised that pig king of Faubrey, Malty in return for his aid in negotiations. How would she negotiate herself out of this? She might have been good, she wasn't THAT good. How would the leaders react?

"Melty dear. Would you mind stepping out for a second?"

"Of-Of course your majesty." Melty said wit a stutter. It was not often when she would see her mother act this way. She quickly made her way out of the room, locking the door behind her.

The shadow then pulled portraits of the King and Malty and hung them on the wall. Queen Mirellia threw icicle daggers with pinpoint accuracy. Each dagger had hit its mark. Two in the eyes, three in the mouth and four in the head. But it would never be enough to quell her anger. A side of Mirelia that seen only by a select few, had emerged from the darkest parts of her soul.

"When I get back to the capital, I will relish the look of fear on their faces. I will make them regret ever making that decision. But for now..." Mirellia had paused, slowly reverting to her impassive facade. "I will have to continue negotiating, as impossible it seems. Shadow, keep an eye out on the Three Heroes Church. I have no doubt that they will use this opportunity to the fullest."

"By your will, My Lady." The Shadow left, never being noticed by anyone.

The Queen let out a frustrated sigh. War with Siltvelt and Shieldfreeden is inevitable at this point. But should the time rise...

She wouldn't feel the slightest bit of remorse if Aultcray's and Malty's heads are served on a silver platter as a peace offering.

Not in the _slightest._

* * *

**AN: *phew* Man. I knew fanfiction took time to write but I didn't think it would take this long. The longest chapter I ever wrote. 5,000 words. Wow! Thank you who favorited and followed this story. I hope this chapter was good enough to keep you wanting more. 40 Favs and 58 Follows. Thank you guys so much! I won't let you down.**

**I know this chapter was more light-hearted with the comedy (well, I hope I at least made 1 person laugh) and everything, but there will be serious moments and funny moments as well. **

**Perfectly balanced. As all things should be.**

**I added those moments from the anime as a way to anchor Naofumi to that world. Remember, He didn't want to stay in that world. But with best girl making an appearance, that should be enough to make him fight. In my opinion at least.**

**Just to clarify, I DO NOT own the profile picture. It belongs to a YouTuber named LT. LiCK ME. Look him up if you have the time. He's amazing.**

**-To the guest who left that long-ass comment last chapter. HOLY SHIT DUDE. I almost had a stroke reading that. I do NOT want to know what it did to you by simply typing that! But yeah, all will be revealed on the trail we blaze! ( guess what that's from!)**

**That's gonna do it for me tonight. See you all in the next chapter!**

**-FF1987 out.**


	3. Breaking the Silence

hey. It's been a while... Like a decade in fact.

I didn't mean to take this long. Most of it was procrastination/ League of Legends. I'm trying so hard to get a mastery level 7 on Jinx (already have one on Miss Fortune). I'm so mad, I got a 24/4/13 one game and I didn't get an S. So mad. But I digress.

Anyway, here you go. An EXTRA long one for you all. To make up. If it feels longwinded, it probably is. But whatever lol.

BLAH BLAH BLAH I DON'T OWN SHIELD HERO BLAH BLAH BLAH. YADA YADA YADA. Let's just get into the story.

* * *

A giant circus tent had been set up on the less affluent side of the capital. When you enter, it would seem to be a monster training business. At face value, that was true. But something was off with the dark and dreary atmosphere coming from the back of the tent.

A short, stout man dressed in fine clothes was working in his office near the entrance. The dimly lit section of the tent would be difficult for anyone to work in, but this man had adapted to the darkness. His glasses gleamed in the lantern light. Profits have been increasing as of late. The nobles whose houses were destroyed in the wave came to him for his side business.

Remember kids, make sure you have a side hustle. Secure two ways of income. That will make your life so much easier.

They needed cheap labor to rebuild, and he had what they needed. Slaves.

Human slavery is illegal in Melromarc. But humans weren't the only sentient beings in this world. Demi-humans were used as a replacement, given their wide array of inhuman abilities. Because of these abilities, they were both despised and prized. Quite the oxymoron. But he didn't question it. As long as he made money, he didn't care about people's opinions.

The day was turning into night. This day, in particular, he had made a decent amount of money. He was counting the silver coins he made when suddenly the tent flap opened. A young man with black hair and green eyes walked in. He was covered in dirt, sweat, grime, blood and other signs of filth. He didn't look like a customer but the look in his eyes said another thing.

The man walked up to the Slave Dealer. Maintaining eye contact with the man, he slowly smiled. "Good evening Sir. How may I help you today?"

The man, trying to catch his breath, took some time to respond. But eventually, he did. "I require a slave. Demi-human, of the raccoon type. Do you have one?"

The slave trader smiled. "Of course. Right this way Sir."

Business as usual.

* * *

...Earlier that Day...

Sky diving is one of those things on everyone's bucket list. It was certainly on Naofumi's. He just wanted to have a parachute when he did it. He also didn't want to be falling at the speed of sound.

As Naofumi fell through the wormhole Aneko had opened, reality slammed into him harder than the impact he would have with the ground. He was going to die again if he didn't do anything. The wind rushed past his ears as he desperately thought of a way to not be flattened. He tried to recall any of the physics lessons he took in high school. Following his memory, he increased his surface area to slow down his descent. While it bought him some time, he knew it would only last for so long. Buying himself an extra couple of seconds she began to think again.

The ground was rapidly moving towards Naofumi. He still hadn't thought of anything. He was interrupted when the weight on his hip got heavier and heavier. He looked at his hip and saw the bag that Aneko gave him. A lightbulb lit up on top of his head.

He grabbed the sack, untied the knot and randomly grabbed an ore. He let his shield absorb the ore to acquire a new shield.

{ExMachina Shield}

Locked

Abilities: Locked

Level 25 required

Not the shield he needed. He tried again with another metal.

{Sentinel Shield}

0/2 Locked

Abilities: Locked

Level 50 required

{Carbonadium Shield}

Locked

Abilities: Locked

Level 15 required

The situation seemed to become increasingly grim as none of these shields could help him. The ground was rushing towards him at speeds this world couldn't even fathom. With a strand of hope left Naofumi pulled out a bluish/black glowing ore. His UI had confirmed the metal. It was what he had been looking for.

Vibranium.

He quickly fed it to his shield and watched as the {Small Legendary Shield} transformed into a recognizable shape. It was a concave circular disk about 2.5 feet in diameter, painted a metallic red, white, and blue with a white star in the middle.

Naofumi had no time to check its abilities. He only had seconds to react or else he would be flattened. Trusting the shield to have the same abilities that it's original, Naofumi turned on his side and curled inside the circumference of the shield. The impact resulted in a loud BOOM that shook the earth and air. A tower of dirt and vegetation was launched into the sky. Naofumi laid at the center of a crater. He groaned in pain as he tried to sit up, regretting it immediately as pain filled his right arm. It was broken, and if not, then he at least fractured it.

"ARGH! FUCK! FUCK THAT HURTS!" Naofumi yelled in pain. His left arm was uninjured. He took his good arm and cradled his broken one. He laid there, panting. The relief of avoiding death for a second time had come to Naofumi. He laughed softly, imagining the look on the faces of those who condemned him to death. That laughter grew increasingly louder. " Take that, you bitches. I'm back. I'M BACK!" The only sound heard in the forest were peals of laughter from a mad man.

* * *

By the time Naofumi had stopped laughing, his arm had healed. Given that he was anchored to the earth, he now had the time to check the shield stats.

{Vibranium Shield}

+500 DEF

+80 SPD

+90 DMG

+20% chance of stunning enemies

+20% health regen

Abilities

Kinetic Energy Absorption: Absorbs Kinetic Energy which can be contained and released from the Shield. (Passive).

Discus Throw: The shield can be thrown accurately up to 30 meters. Can ricochet off surfaces for unexpected attacks. Deals 100-1000 physical DMG depending on the hero's level. Will always return to the hero when called upon (Active).

When Naofumi had finished reading the stats on his new shield, he was excited. While he internally debated if this was an equal and fair exchange for his death he quickly pushed that thought aside. He was back. He had to level up as quickly as possible before the wave hit. But with all the things Aneko has done for him, he didn't need to worry. He just needed some way to accurately tell when the waves were about to start. Naofumi remembered the help screen on his UI. He quickly opened up and read up on the game mechanics of this world.

" Hello." A voice had spoken to Naofumi. He jumped and extended the DOOM blade. When he saw that there was no one around him he sheathed his blade. But the voice spoke up.

"My apologies. I did not mean to alarm you." Naofumi looked down at his shield only to find the green gem pulsating with light at every word spoken.

"What the hell are you?"

"I am S.H.I.E.L.D, the sentient artificial intelligence placed inside your weapon's gem. I am one of the 4 unique programs inside the cardinal weapons. I believe I was activated by the deity you call Aneko Yusagi."

"She gave you to me? She never mentioned that." Naofumi asked, clearly confused about the A.I. in his shield.

" That is because she ran out of time. To put it simply, when a holy weapon is in the same area as a goddess, it will unlock the sentient beings contained inside. A goddess can only hold a physical manifestation in this world for so long. If she were to stay in the "purgatory" as you call it, her raw power would have seeped through and blasted every living organism in the known universe into oblivion. That and she simply wanted you back into this world." The new A.I. had informed him.

"What other things did her blessing give me?" Naofumi asked SHIELD.

"I am currently unable to check the blessing's status or its effects. However, I can list off my primary functions if you'd like."

"Sure go ahead. It's not every day I get my own Cortana." Naofumi chuckled.

" I can read the stats on all the shields you have acquired. I can also inform you of the stats on enemies. My hard drive contains all the knowledge that has ever been recorded in this world, as well as your world. Should the opportunity or need arise, I can use an X-ray skill where I am able to fully access the inventory and UI of anyone. Though it would pose a much greater challenge to perform my abilities on other heroes. To a certain extent, I am capable of-" SHIELD went on for quite some time. Needless to say, he was extremely helpful.

" I can read off all the numbers of pi. And finally, The meaning of life is-" SHIELD said after listing off his abilities.

" 42. Yeah, Yeah that's nice and all but I need your help. What can you tell me about the waves?" Naofumi asked after patiently waiting for so long.

" The Waves of Calamity. A supernatural phenomenon that occurs at random intervals. The origin is unknown, however, limited knowledge includes the following: To fight the waves directly, you'll need to register for them or be in a hero's party. To register for the waves, you'll need to get in contact with a Dragon HourGlass. Once registered, you and your party will be transported to the site of the wave along with your chosen supporters. Each wave gets progressively harder as they continue. Not only that but if one of the heroes were to go missing or end up dead, the waves will progress at an alarming pace. On one such occasion, this world had almost fallen prey to the waves for that same reason."

SHIELD's answer had puzzled Naofumi. If all four heroes were needed, then why did that Trash King kill him? Did he want to watch the world burn? And SHIELD couldn't be implying that, could he?

He asked hesitantly, fearing SHIELD's answer. " And where is the nearest Dragon HourGlass?"

Without missing a beat, SHIELD answered mercilessly "The nearest Dragon HourGlass is located in the Three Heroes Church in the Melromarcian Capital."

Fuck.

* * *

"Alright, if I need to go there to fight in the waves, then I have to suck it up. Question is, how can I sneak into there without being caught? SHIELD?"

" After running multiple diagnostics, I have concluded that the most logical way to approach an enemy stronghold is to level up and unlock the rest of the Vibranium Shield. If my calculations are correct, which is 99.99% of the time, then that shield can be forged or modded with another element. For example, if we were to find an ore that had light abilities, we could mod it with the {Vibranium Shield} to give you a cloaking skill. It would be enough to sneak your way into the Capital and get out. However, if you would like to take a longer route, the second closest would be in Zeatbolt. A month's journey by carriage. Calculating the walking distance and time would be useless as the wave would have already occurred."

"Alright then. Let's try to find some ore. Uhh... what exactly are we looking for?"

" We would have to search for what is called Void Ore, although the more commonly found Light Metal will suffice. Head northeast for 20 minutes and you'll find a cave system protruding from the ground."

Naofumi climbed out of the crater he had made. As soon as he stepped foot from the hole, the world around him went black.

d0 Y0u s33k PoWeR?

...

...

...

"Nani?"

Suddenly a flash of light and a red bolt of lightning shot from the gem of the shield. From the outside, the sky darkened with rain clouds and thunderstorms. A seemingly clear blue sky had suddenly turned dark. But the inside of Naofumi's mind was a whole different dimension.

A shield tree that contained all of the possible shields had appeared in Naofumi's UI. The green branches shined for a moment before withering away. The "tree" itself looked like it was dying. The dead branches then glowed a murderous red. A dark soul black. Some mixture of the two. Another tree had taken its place. The tree was smaller but that wasn't the only change. While his previous tree didn't have a title, this one did.

Curse Series Requirements Met

{Shield of Rage} Unlocked

+800 DEF

Iron Maiden (666 DMG): Combo Skill "Change Shield" Required

Gain unfathomable power but at a cost...

The information on this cursed shield had disappeared as fast as it had appeared. Naofumi hardly had any time to read the description before he was filled with hatred. A tidal wave of negative emotions had crashed into Naofumi's psyche. His mind was a whirlwind of emotions before slowing down and everything dissipated. Only one emotion had stayed in Naofumi's mind. Rage.

Flashbacks of Naofumi's execution had appeared as screens in front of Naofumi.

The staged trial.

The dungeon torture. (A/N: More on that later)

The public execution.

Each and every single one of these events had the one person he wished to kill.

On the screens, Bitch was seen laughing. Laughing in delight at Naofumi's tormented screams from the dungeon. Laughing with glee when he was executed. Taunting him as he was put on trial.

The laughter alone was infuriating. But the visuals themselves only served as gas to burn in Naofumi's fiery fury.

A new surge of power filled Naofumi's mind as his wrath skyrocketed. Power was coursing through his veins, filling every cell in his body with energy. His muscles tensed, his body was doused with adrenaline. It felt amazing. It was addictive. He wanted more.

SHIELD had feared this would happen. Being a sentient, omniscient, and artificial being, his top priority should have been to warn Naofumi of the curse. He would have never guessed that he would unlock it in a single step. SHIELD had underestimated the rage held up inside Naofumi's soul.

Being the A.I held within the shield had its advantages. SHIELD knew everything about the shield's curse series, abilities, and powerups. This knowledge had led him to a particular entity in this world. A god-like being that has lived in this world for centuries. She had the power to sever and prohibit the heroes from connection to their weapons. But this recorded data was simply left to fade away as the passage of time lengthened. Her absence from civilization only accelerated the dissolving of her known existence.

Using his powers, he was able to replicate her powers the blessings. Replicating powers and abilities was one of his (the shield's) primary functions, but it could only be used in dire situations. A dire situation is determined when one of the heroes either faces certain death or being incapacitated. While it wasn't as well refined as her own power, SHIELD was certain it would get the job done. It just had to.

SHIELD activated the ability and could only wait for the effects to take place.

The rage bubbling inside Naofumi was abruptly cut off. It was as if the heat of the fire had been snuffed out with a strong gust of wind. Naofumi being brought back to the realm of reality, he saw the inferno he had created. The heat was beginning to affect his consciousness.

From the lack of oxygen and the tremendous stress put on his psyche, Naofumi lost consciousness. His body slumped over the hot ash-covered ground.

When he woke up, the fire had gone out. All that was left were the ashes of trees and the smell of smoke.

"Welcome back to the real world, Naofumi."

SHIELD had started talking. He sounded tired. Strange for something with no physical form.

"W-what was tha-that?" Naofumi had asked with fear in his voice. One moment he was walking and the next he was filled to the brim with anger. It was a terrifying experience.

"Unfortunately you have unlocked the Curse Series. The Curse Series are unlocked when you experience an extremely emotionally traumatizing event relating to the 7 deadly sins. In your case, it was your treatment in Melromarc. These sins are lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, envy, pride, and wrath. As you figured out by now, you unlocked the wrath subseries. This series will grant you immense power but at a cost, often associating with the sin you unlocked. In layman's terms, the angrier you get, the stronger your powers will come. However, the risk is too great and in time, you'll lose yourself to the madness should you rely on it."

"Then how come I didn't hulk-out in purgatory?" he asked, clearly confused about this whole ordeal.

"Simple. You didn't have a body."

"Explain."

SHIELD went on to give Nafoumi an entire AP Psychology lecture about emotions. To put it simply, emotions are brought on by the chemical changes in the brain. Since Naofumi didn't have a brain or even a body at that, he couldn't feel emotions, thus delaying the curse's effects. That is why he had been in a kuudere stage.

"... but now that you have a body, your emotions can have an effect on you." SHIELD finished after talking for about an hour.

" Then why did I have emotions when talking to Aneko?

"Hush now, the author doesn't want to explain this. He'll keep the readers waiting until he finally has a good explanation for them."

"What?"

"Never mind that." SHIELD had quickly replied, blatantly dodging the question

"For a world with so many game mechanics and magic, you sometimes forget the science still has its hold on you," Naofumi said to no one in particular, merely speaking to himself.

The walk to the cave was extremely silent.

* * *

The entrance to the cave was near a tool shed. Upon entering, Naofumi saw tools lying around. From pickaxes to spades and even rope, all a miner could need was there. Quickly absorbing all of the tools, an entire list of shields popped up. He unlocked the {Pickax Shield}, the {Shovel Shield}, the {Lantern Shield}, but the last one was the most interesting.

"Air Strike Shield?" Naofumi mused out loud. Suddenly a green shield phased into view. A metallic clank sound vibrates the air and the shield becomes a light construct. Reading its stats, He found out that the strength of the Airstrike Shield was proportional to the defense of the hero, aka him. Again, overpowered.

As it turns out, Naofumi's shield has the ability to take absorbed non-weapon tools and reconstruct them into hard light constructs.

What am I, Green Lantern? He thought internally, joking at the sight of him in an animated suit.

He got this after absorbing rope, acquiring the {Rope Shield}. It was the first normal, in-game, non-mod, passive skill he got. Reading over its stats, the rope shield was quite low in the defense department, but what it lacked in defense, it made up for in other areas. The previous skill was one example, but it wasn't the only one he got. He also got an active ability called Rope.

.

.

.

It was called Rope. Plain and simple.

Rope was able to latch onto any surface within 20 meters, like a grappling hook. However, it did have a weight limit. Not that it's important.

The other shields did what their names suggested. They helped him mine, dig, and see in the dark. After preparing himself, he went into the mine. The walls were lined with wooden posts to prevent cave-ins. Upon seeing them, he could tell that this mine was excavated many years prior to his summoning. Seeing it as a hassle to switch between shields, he modded the {Pickax Shield} with the {Spade Shield} and {Lantern Shield}. It was more of a tool than an actual weapon with the modifications. While it was called {Pickax Shield: Modded} Naofumi just called it {Miner's Dream}.

Using the {Miner's Dream}, Naofumi walked until the cave was lit up with green light coming from the crystals.

Waking up to the nearest crystal, Naofumi willed a hard-light construct of a pickaxe to appear in his hands. The green tool glowed in the dim cave, providing him with even more visibility. He brought the pickaxe over his head and swung down hard. The crack echoed throughout the cave. Grabbing the crystal, Naofumi inspected the ore as the light faded away. The other part of the crystal that was still in the earth continued to glow, causing some unimportant and unrelated questions to arise.

SHIELD guided Naofumi through the modding process. He just had to combine his Vibranium shield with the light ore and a new ability will appear. Unlike the other times where Naofumi got his locked shields, modding needed a different approach. It needed an anchor to this world in order to be usable. The other shields made from the Fictional ores had the Shield as an anchor, but to mod, an ore from this world to a shield made of otherworldly metals made things... complicated.

"The process is now complete. Let me pull up its new stats." SHIELD said.

{Vibranium Shield: Modded}

NEW ABILITY

Cloaking: Using the light metal's light photon manipulation, the user can shroud themselves in a light that blends in with the background.

"This modding technique is overpowered. This has to be one of Aneko's blessings. Right?" Naofumi had asked the A.I.

"The answer is still unknown, however, it wouldn't be so wrong as to assume that. The Holy Weapons have the ability to absorb any material and use aspects of that material as skills and power-ups. But in your case, it seems you can manage and combine the powers and skills into any shield you want."

Naofumi nodded in confirmation. This technique would make him stronger. Well, stronger than he already was. A big part of him was happy. Happy to know that he would be stronger than any of the other Heroes.

The growls of a monster interrupted his thoughts. He quickly turned on to find a two-headed dog lunging at him. Quickly calling out his {Vibranium Shield} Naofumi met the beast's charge head-on. Slamming the shield against the monster's head,... well, heads. The result was a deafening bang, that stunned the monster. The look on its faces was a mixture of pain and constipation. If it weren't for the situation he was in, Naofumi would have laughed. But taking advantage of the momentarily pause, Naofumi rushed forward and sliced off one of the heads. The sounds of metal slicing through flesh were the only things Naofumi heard as he decapitated the animal. The monster roared in pain, as his other head fell to the ground with a plop. Blood squirted like a fountain from the base of its head.

Being blinded by rage, the beast charged recklessly, wishing to tear apart the man who caused it harm. But its resistance was futile. As the monster was glowing blue. Usually, this would be a telltale sign of a powerup or boost. But it wasn't for the monster.

Using his newly acquired skill, Naofumi brandished DOOM and yelled out its skill.

"GLORY KILL!" Naofumi's body went into autopilot. As if pulled by a mysterious force, he closed the gap between the two and drove DOOM into the monster's abdominal cavity. The creature froze, but Naofumi wasn't done. He raised his arm upward and the blade followed suit. The monster's body had split into two, right down the middle. Perfectly. With surgical precision, the blade had split the heart into halves, each lung on one side of the carcass and so forth.

The bisected corpse fell onto the ground with a wet plop. Glancing at his health and mana meters, he discovered that he sustained no damage. But man, he felt out of shape. That monster was a LVL 15 spawn. He would have to train to get better at fighting monsters or even people. The other heroes were "pros" at games like this, so they could be amazing at fighting. If one of them were to find him, he would most likely have to fight.

It was awkward to butcher the dog. Not only did he not have the right tools to accurately cut the pieces, but it was still a dog. He prayed to Aneko that PETA would never find out about this.

Huffing in exhaustion, Naofumi continued to mine for some time. He figured they could go for a decent price later on. Upon returning to the surface Naofumi had put all of the crystals into his inventory. It seemed as if there was no limit to the inventory, meaning he could put whatever he wanted in there. Asking SHIELD about the limitations would just leave him in an hour lecture about Einstein's theory of general relativity or something. He would figure it out on his own.

"Alright, we got the ore we needed, now we have to go back. Fuck me, do we really have to go back?"

"It is the closest Dragon hourglass, and you only have some little time before the next wave arrives. I believe the term you humans use is ' You won't do it. No Balls".

"HEY! I'll have you know that I do indeed have balls unlike you, you dick-less robot!"

The words "dickless robot" echoed through the cave entrance. The walls shook slightly at the intensity of the shout.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"I'm sorry. That was extremely rude of me."

"... s'okay." SHIELD responded in a quiet voice, sniffling, evidently hurt by Naofumi's words.

"... Can you please show me the way to Melromarc?"

"Calculating route... Route found. Head northwest for seven hours... ."

Naofumi sighed tiredly. He trekked forward, not looking forward to going back to the place of his death.

* * *

It was dark by the time Naofmui had Melromarc in view. As expected with only a week passing since his death, nothing had changed. The meadows that surrounded the outer wall swayed with the gentle breeze. The occasional balloon would leap from the grass.

During those five hours of walking, Naofumi had leveled up quite a bit. Because he was going through unpopulated areas, monsters would frequently show up. Naofumi had no trouble disposing of them. His DOOM Blade was extraordinarily powerful. Before they arrived at Melromarc, Naofumi had SHIELD look over its stats.

DOOM Blade: Lvl 1

+66 DMG

+100 DEF

Abilities

Glory Kill: When an enemy has suffered a certain amount of damage, they will be highlighted in blue, which indicates the opportunity to one-shot them with a melee. What will follow next can only be described as a downpour of blood and internal organs. (Active)

Blood Punch: When the heroes perform a glory kill, their next melee attack will be supercharged. It can break the armor off the toughest of monsters.(Active)(Locked)

It was cool and all, but if he were to use it, it would make blending in even more difficult than normal due to the fact he would constantly be covered in blood and innards. He wondered if he could get an enchantment on his armor. SHIELD had confirmed his thoughts without needing to be asked. It was like he could read Naofumi's mind.

"SHIELD, can you track people in this world?" Naofumi had asked, hoping to hear a confirmation. But he got a negative. "If you are looking to find the demi-human Raphtalia, then no. I can not track people we haven't met yet. But, I can find where she is being held. After all, she is a slave."

"Can you do that? We should go there first, in case the church infiltration goes south."

"Listing Objectives... Objectives list made." After he unlocked the Curse Series, SHIELD had recommended updating his UI. His reasons were logical and Naofumi had no reason to deny the suggestion. With the new update, everything looked well, better. It looked like a whole new OS update. And there were some added changes. There was a linear compass at the very top of his vision. A mini-map with a range of 100 meters was at the top right of his "screen". Every now and then, a red dot indicating a monster would pop up and Naofumi used DOOM blade to make it vanish.

In the bottom right of Naofumi's UI, was a list of his current objectives. Finding Raphtalia was at the top of that list. The second was getting to the Dragon HourGlass. At the bottom in bold capital letters was "GET THE HELL OUT OF MELROMARC"

By the time Naofumi had gone over the new information he was given, he had reached the Capital walls. He quickly hid in the shadows and activated his cloaking ability. He walked towards the light of the torches and approached the gate.

Are you sure this is going to work? Naofumi mentally asked SHIELD.

Certainly. The probability of failure would be within the Planck percentage if there were a thing. SHIELD had reassured him for the fourth time.

"I don't even know what Planck means." Naofumi silently regretted asking. One thing he had learned in the seven hours with SHIELD is that he is very literal. Sure he was sentient and incredibly smart, but he didn't know when people were being serious or not.

Planck Measurement: proposed by Max Planck in 1918, it is a unit of the smallest- he was interrupted.

NO! NONE OF THAT! SHAME ON YOU! he berated the confused A.I. The sentient gem tried to continue explaining but Naofumi shut him up.

I don't need knowledge right now. Just shut up so I can sneak into this hell hole. Never thought I would say that.

Naofumi had crouched and slowly passed the guards at the front gate. He was about to let out a sigh of relief when a voice called out.

"Hey."

"Yeah?"

Naofumi froze. His eyes widened. He started nervously sweating. His muscles tensing, ready to spring into action should he need to escape.

"You ever wonder why we're here?" The guard had asked his friend.

"It's one of life's greatest mysteries, isn't it? Why ARE we here? I mean..."

Naofumi had heard the quote several times back in his world. He didn't want to hear it again in another world by pure happenstance. He crawled away slowly, avoiding anything that would alert the guards of his presence.

When he was in the clear, he slowly rose up and stood at the end of a street. The nights were as lively as the days or so he recalled. Many shops were opened for the nightly business. That much could be deduced with the open windows on lit rooms of many buildings and shops down the first street.

He turned around and took the longer route, to avoid any potential confrontations. The alleyways were dark, only a small amount of light from the streets entered. He had to strain his eyes to see 10 feet in front of him.

Now completely blinded by the darkness, Naofumi relied on his sense of touch and his compass's marker on Raphtaia's location.

He was blindly walking when suddenly SHIELD called out "Watch out for-"

"Oof" Naofumi had run into a wall. "Ouch, thanks for the warning SHIELD." He stated sarcastically.

The A.I. didn't respond. Naofumi simply returned to feeling his way around the capital.

After a few moments, Naofumi began to see light. The marker was pointed directly forward. With renewed determination, Naofumi walked toward the light. Upon reaching the end of the alleyway, Naofumi was met with a giant circus tent. The marker was now blinking rapidly, confirming Raphtalia's location.

He opened the flap of the tarp and was met with more darkness. But off to his left, he saw a well-dressed man counting silver coins. Assuming the man ran this place, Naofumi walked towards him. The man now noticing Nofumi's presence smiled.

"Good evening Sir. How may I help you today?" the stout man asked.

" I require a slave. Demi-human, of the raccoon type. Do you have one?" Naofumi had asked, already knowing Raphtalia was here.

"Of course, right this way sir."

* * *

Back to the Present...

The slave trader had guided Naofumi through the labyrinth of cages and boxes. During this time, he had also asked Naofumi if anything he saw interested him. Naofumi didn't respond. Everything he saw was either too expensive or unusable. Many of the slaves were rotting away in their cages. Naofumi felt pity for them, but this world was different from his own. It was much crueler. Naofumi experienced that first hand.

As the slave trade was walking, Naofumi heard a cough over the ruckus. A child's cough. The closer he got, the louder it was. Before the slave trader could show him, Naofumi lifted the tarp off the cage.

Dead pink eyes stared lifelessly back into his emerald eyes.

He found her.

She looked much worse from his visions. She wore rags as clothing and chains as jewelry. She lowered her head, coughing into her hand. Her skin was blemished and covered with grime. Her light brown hair was messy and mangled.

"These are the cheapest slaves I have to offer. Starting from the left I have-" the slave trader started but was soon interrupted by Naofumi.

"Can you raise your head." Naofumi had asked Raphtalia.

She coughed some more before obeying out of fear of displeasing the slave trader.

"You did say you were looking for a raccoon demi-human but I must warn you, good sir. She is very ill and mentally traumatized. She suffers from night terrors and often keeps the other slaves up at night as a result. Her previous owner was a sadist, taking pleasure from seeing her scream. She is not long for this world, I would recommend something else." The slave trader had informed him.

Naofumi was half expecting the creep to lie about her condition to get more money out of her. Guess he shouldn't judge people by the business they do.

He was looking over Raphtalia. Meeting his eyes with hers, Raphtalia flinched back in fear. After today, she would no longer have anything to fear. He would protect her.

"I've decided. I'll be taking her." Naofumi had said, despite the Slave Traders warning.

"Eh- But Sir-"

"I don't care if she's sick. I'm taking a liability off your hands." He harshly reminded the slave trader of the predicament of having Raphtalia in the tent. While none of the slaves were in good health, the sick slaves could get the others sick. Putting them in "quarantine" or simply covering them up, wouldn't work forever. By buying a sick slave, the slave trader could put a little more effort into the other slaves.

Fulfilling a customer's request, the Slave Trader took out a set of keys and opened the cage. Raphtalia was shaking, terrified of what her future would hold. Her eyes widened as the slave trader grabbed the chain that bound her to the cell and yanked it. She was forced out of the cage and roughly brought back to the lit area in front of the exit.

Some of the Slave Trader's staff came in with a jar of ink. SHIELD had spoken up. "The slave registration process requires the homogeneous mixture of your blood and the ink. A drop should be enough."

Naofumi had grabbed the knife presented to him and pricked his thumb. Squeezed the base of his thumb to imitate a tourniquet and allow blood to build up from the wound. After a few seconds, Naofumi had released his thumb from its restraint and let the blood fall into the ink.

The slave trader, having already done this for many years, quickly dipped the brush into the ink and painted a circle around Raphtalia's chest. The whole time she was flinching and bracing for some pain. Naofumi felt sorry for her. She was a child and yet she experienced pain many would never feel in their lifetime.

The sounds of burning flesh were heard and soon electrical buzzing joined in. A purple flash of light beamed from Raphtalia's chest as she screamed in agony. Knowing that Naofumi would ask about it, The slave trader answered his unspoken question. "Nothing to worry about Sir. The pain will dissipate soon. The crest is an integral part of the ritual. The slaves will feel this pain if they disobey you or betray you. Should you desire it, you can even kill them." The slave trader finished that sentence off with a smile. " "There, you own your first slave. Now, the price is 30 silver."

30 silvers. Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 shekels of silver. The price for betrayal, and yet, here he was, buying loyalty.

Naofumi had SHIELD withdraw 31 pieces of silver in a sack. He tossed it to the slave trader. He knew the slave trader would ask about the extra coin, but he couldn't care. He walked over to the weak child. He waited for her to catch her breath. After she got her breathing stable he spoke.

"Tell me, kid, what's your name?" Naofumi had asked gently. He hoped that being the first master to show her kindness would help her trust him. Even if it was little.

" R-R-Raphtalia." the girl answered, in a voice barely above a whisper. After not talking for days, her voice became hoarse.

"Raphtalia huh? Come on, let's get you out of here."

Raphtalia's eyes widened in surprise. Naofumi held his hand out to her. She hesitantly grabbed it. Naofumi had held her hand until they left the circus tent.

"I'm amazed. It appears that the Church failed. Hehehe. My spine is tingling with anticipation. Best of luck to you, Sir Shield Hero." The slave trader laughed as he walked back to counting his profits.

* * *

When he walked out, and in hand with Raphtalia, the objectives list had lit up. The Raphtalia objective had glowed a strong blue before fading away. The next objective had moved in its place. New words were forming from the bottom of the list with a clock next to it.

New Objective in 4 Hours

Having achieved one of his objectives, Naofumi had received a reward.

Finding Raphtalia: Complete

Rewards

+200 exp

+1 Nth Metal shard.

By now, Naofumi had reached level 10. Those seven hours of grinding were monotonous work but they got him up several levels. Because these monsters were further into the forest than most other monsters, they were worth a lot more exp than those balloons he fought on the first day. With Naofumi's broken defense and an offensive weapon, he had no trouble dispatching the beasts. Naofumi had kneeled down and held his arms behind him.

"Here, get on." He offered her a piggyback ride.

Raphtalia was very weak and had a hard time standing, let alone walking. Naofumi wanted to treat her the best way he could. He didn't know much about raising a kid, but he would try his best.

Raphtalia, too confused and tired to complain, fell against his back in exhaustion. His warm back offered more heat than the rags she wore. She snuggled into his back and held on tight.

Having holstered Raphtalia up onto his back, he began walking back into the darkness. "SHIELD, be my eyes. I have to take care of Raphtalia right now."

"Of course... Stop. There is a wall 3 feet in front of you. Turn right and walk for 5 seconds."

Putting this much faith in an A.I. while holding on to a child was never the best thing, but it was his only option. He would prioritize Raphtalia's needs over his own. Always.

" Okay, Raphtalia listen up. We'll be going to the church of the three heroes soon. When we get there, I need you to hold on as tight as you can. You can't make any noise either. If we get caught, they'll kill us both. Understand?"

"Y-Yes Sir." was her hesitant reply.

"Good".

* * *

The three steeple buildings were dark. No light was coming from its triangular windows. The whole building was designed with triangles. The belfry, the lantern, everything had triangles. Either the Illuminati had taken over this world first, or there was some other symbolic meaning to it. Looking at it closer now confirmed Naofumi's thoughts along with the parade. These people only worshiped the 3 offensive heroes. Each steeple had their respective weapons on it. The shield was the only weapon missing. Figures.

"SHIELD how do we break-in?"

"I suggest using the recently acquired Nth metal to get unlock a new shield."

Naofumi opened his inventory and grabbed the fictional metal. Its rough surface scraped his fingers. Naofumi inspected the metal and realized it was hot.

" Nth metal lies well past the transuranic boundaries of the periodic table. It is currently leaking radioactivity that could rival the Fukushima-Daiichi meltdown. I suggest feeding it to your shield as quickly as possible."

"R-Right."

Naofumi had followed SHIELD's instructions and unlocked a new shield.

{Nth Metal Shield}

+300 DEF

+200 STM

Regeneration: Hastens the body's healing factor to superhuman levels.

Gravity Negation: Allows the user to control or ignore gravity

"Oh come on. This is bullshit. I get this after walking for SEVEN HOURS?! Why couldn't I get this from the start?"

"It seems that Aneko is positively reinforcing you with new powers and shields. She must think that you need to be incentivized to save this world."

"Oh please. She probably forgot to give me some stuff with the time limit she had. This is her excuse to get me stronger." Upon saying this out loud, his eyes widened. Naofumi checked the poach Aneko had given him to check if he was wrong. Opening the poach, he saw many more stones, but he had to be sure. Randomly grabbing one, he let his shield absorb it. Only for it to pop right back out.

"What!?"

A second later a message came back up.

{ExMachina Shield} has already been unlocked.

He tried again with another ore. But it ended with the same result. Every single ore in his bag had already been unlocked. In other words, Aneko only gave him 4 fictional metals.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME! FUCKING USELESS, LYING GODD-"

A sharp pain was felt in his forearm."OW!" She must have heard him. "You're only angry because it's true."

More pain ensued.

Using the Nth Metal shield, Naofumi levitated off the ground. It took him some time getting used to levitation but once he got the hang of it, he floated to the top. Raphtalia had shrieked in surprise. She made the amateur mistake of looking down. She quickly gasped, shut her eyes and held onto Naofumi tighter.

"It's ok. I won't let you fall. Trust me." Naofumi had gently told the raccoon child. She didn't respond, she just held on.

Upon reaching one of the higher windows of the middle belfry, he quietly opened the window and flew through. He closed the window and looked around. The staircase to the belfry wasn't lit with torches. That meant two things. Either no one was in the church, or they were trying to hide, using the shadows. He hoped it was the former.

Changing to his Modified Vibranium Shield, he uses the cloaking ability to evade any guards lurking in the shadows. The shield also had the ability to silence his footsteps. He could jump up and down, but not a single sound wave would be emitted. This was an extremely helpful ability, especially for situations like this. Being both unseen and unheard is the ultimate combo for espionage.

After making his way out of the corridor, Naofumi was met with a giant room. Support beams were designed to look like triangles as they also held up the ceiling. A giant cross, unlike the one that was currently hanging his corpse, was presented in front and center behind the altar. The cross itself was unique. It had integrated the recognizable parts of the three cardinal weapons. The top had the sword's blade, the bottom was the spear's point, and the bow made the horizontal part, effectively holding the two together.

To any person in this world, the cross would seem well crafted and beautiful in its own right. But all Naofumi felt was hatred. He made a quick reminder to bash it into pieces on his way out.

In the aisles and nave of the church, candles were light, providing Naofumi with the sense of sight. On the walls, even more, triangles. Three sides, three heroes. Naofumi was getting sick and tired of triangles. It didn't help that he was close to flunking Geometry in high school.

Behind the altar, the soft moonlight came in through the giant stained glass window. The narrow strips of lead held the multi-colored glass together. It must have been expensive and time-consuming to make. Perfect, he found his escape route.

When he walked toward the altar, He spotted a large cabinet. Inside the cabinet were bottles of liquid. Seeing the lock on the cabinet doors urged Naofumi to break into it. After grabbing the bottles he found out that they contained holy water. SHIELD quietly informed him of the benefits of holy water, how it could cure curses and do extra damage to darker beings, such as undead monsters.

It didn't take long for Naofumi to ransack the entire cabinet of its supply of holy water. He must've taken over 100 bottles ranging from crude to pure, in quality. Getting back to the task at hand Naofumi looked around. Naofumi saw two more corridors. Great, a fork in the road. He was now stuck with a decision to make. If he chose incorrectly, it would cost him time and increase his risk of getting caught.

Mentally, he asked SHIELD to bring up the blueprints to the church building. After a second, the plans had popped up in his vision. The corridor to his right leads to a dead end. Seeing this, Naofum had gone to the left one. The hallway was dark, not a single photon illuminating the darkness. Trusting the blueprints, he continued walking until he came into an open room. The room was octagonal, but the ceiling was set high up. Maybe 60 feet. A moat had been dug, leaving the center of the room like an island.

In the middle was the Dragon Hourglass.

The large hourglass had no foundation as it wasn't touching the ground. It was levitating in place, giving it an angelic appearance. A frame of gold had surrounded the four large glass bulbs. Four red gems were placed at the top, bottom, and center of the structure. They were rotating at a constant speed, in sync with each other. They all moved in the same direction, never going in one direction for too long. It certainly didn't look man-made, so where did it come from?

As Naofumi had approached the hourglass the gem in his shield glowed. A green beam of light sprouted from the gem and hit the center of the Dragon Hourglass. After a couple of moments, a timer had appeared at the center bottom of Naofumi's U.I.

Time until Next Wave:

16:13:08:42

16:13:08:41

16:13:08:40

16:13:08:39

16:13:08:38

Good. There was enough time for him to level up. Although he had leveled up from the seven-hour walk, he wanted to make sure he was ready for it. He also had to worry about Raphtalia's level. Although he had a means of attacking, he still needed party members. Even though he had literally been given God's blessing, he knew he couldn't do it alone. That and Rpahtalia had been there for him, with the temptation of being free dangling in front of her face. He couldn't do the same to her.

A bang rang out from behind a closed door off to the right. The sound of pulsating energy quickly filled the room. Naofumi got this bizarre sense of familiarity. Whatever it was behind that door, he somehow recognized. He so himself slowly walking towards that door. Jumping over the divide, Naofumi's hand reached for the door. His fingers were only inches away from making contact with the door. Before he could open it...

*Cough Cough Cough* Raphtalia had started coughing, her disease suddenly acting up. Naofumi's eyes widened, he tried to silence her but it was too late.

"Who's there?! Reveal yourself or face the might of God!"

Shit! He had been found out. He began running down the hall he came from. Voices were heard behind him, some in anger, but majority in confusion. Naofumi hadn't accounted for guards watching over the Dragon Hourglass. He let his guard down and it was a mistake he quickly came to regret.

He was surrounded by a group of people dressed in black. They wore hoods over their faces and owl-like masks to hide their identity.

I'm getting a Court of the Owls vibe right now.

One figure unsheathed a dagger and made a stab at Naofumi. Reacting too slowly, the blade made contact with his skin. But it didn't break. The blade bounced off harmlessly, with a CLANG sound. Sparks flew and the blade's point had been snapped.

"Close your eyes Raphtalia."

Seeing this, Naofumi retaliated. DOOM blade quickly extended to its maximum length, about 2 feet from his fist. "Glory Kill!" Bringing his arm down, DOOM had sliced through the Shadow's arm, leaving him amputated. Before the Shadow could scream out, Naofumi thrust the blade into his chest. A wet SQUELCH was heard as it cut through bone and flesh.

Watching one of their comrades fall, the other shadows desperately tried to eliminate the threat. But it was pointless. They would find that out too late as their disfigured bodies were torn to shreds. Limbs flew, innards spilled out, and brains were severed in two. The white marble floor of the Dragon HourGlass was tainted by its very protectors.

By the time he finished, reinforcements were dropping down from the balcony above. Naofumi escaped through the hallway where he ran into a group of three people. The Pope who had witnessed his death was escorted by guards. Rage fueled Naofumi's movements. The SHING sound of DOOM echoed throughout the hallway. The charging group stopped dead in their tracks, their eyes Moving towards the silver gleam of the blade. before they can react Naofumi closed the distance between the two parties in the blink of an eye. Naofumi swung DOOM in an arc, aiming for the Pope's shoulder, but the Pope's guards pushed him aside and tasted the bite of Noafumi's blade in his place. But Noafumi still injured the Pope.

The blade had sliced through the two guards as if they were made of paper. The blade had sliced through the two and continued towards the Pope without any loss of momentum. The Blade sank into the Pope's shoulder. The Pope let out an anguished cry as Naofumi retracted the blade and bashed the Pope in the face with his shield.

"Your Holiness!" A desperate cry was heard. Naofumi didn't bother looking back. He started sprinting toward the giant cross in front of the window and he switched to the {Vibranium Shield}. "Discus Throw" Naofumi yelled, activating the ability. The star-spangled shield flew across the church, crashing into the heavy golden cross. The cross fell like a domino and broke through the glass window. Changing into the {Nth Shield}, Naofumi ran up the cross and jumped out the window. He flew high into the sky, disappearing into the night.

"Your Holiness! Quick! Someone call a healer!"

Medics came rushing to heal the Pope with prayer. But they could only stop the bleeding. Black veins were beginning to spread throughout the Pope's shoulder. They quickly brought the purest holy water but it couldn't heal the wound. Even though the church had been consecrated as holy ground. No curse should be able to take effect on the premises.

Removing the curse would be a top priority for the Three Heroes Church. The second would be to continue assisting the heroes and spreading their propaganda. The third would be to inform the king of the attempt on the Pope's life.

* * *

Once Naofumi had flown far enough, he touched down on the outskirts of the meadows surrounding the capital. He gently lowered Raphtalia to the ground where she sat still. Never raising her head to meet Naofumi's eyes, she was trembling in fear. It was because of her that they had been found out. If she could have just held in her coughs for a little longer, they would have been home free.

Naofumi felt pity for her. Here was, in front of him, a child too scared to look at him in the eye, for fear of being punished. If anything, he shouldn't have bought her on the mission in the first place.

Rapthalia was expecting to be struck for her failure. But Naofumi would never do that to a child. So she was shocked when she felt him place his hand on her head, between her ears and start rubbing. She looked up, surprised to be head patted by her new master. She had only been given this treatment from the people of her village. But they were all gone. Her parents, her friends, she would never see them again.

"It's my fault we got caught. I should have treated your illness first. I'm sorry." he bowed his head towards her.

Never in her life would she have thought that her master would bow to her. After seeing this, she quickly reassured him that it wasn't his fault.

They walked deeper into the woods to avoid any unwanted contact with anyone. Raphtalia held his hand the entire time. She was treating him like a lifeline, too afraid to let go for fear of being abandoned. Naofumi gently squeezed her hand to reassure her that he won't be going anywhere.

Naofumi felt the night breeze go by. Even though he was only wearing what he died, he didn't feel any cold. The {Nth Shield} had certain properties that protected the user from extreme temperatures. But he was the only one with it. Putting her needs before his, he took off his shirt and gave it to her. "Here. This should provide you with some warmth until we get you some new clothes."

"N-N-No. I can't do that. You'll be-" She shivered, only to be interrupted.

"Take it."

She hesitantly took the shirt and put it on. Of course, it was 5 sizes too big and baggy on her emaciated figure. But it did help with the cold.

"SHIELD, can you light a spark?" Naofumi had asked out loud. Raphtalia simply stared at him confused. To her, there was no one beside them in the forest.

"Of course sir." SHIELD had responded out loud. Raphtalia was spooked, Her heart was racing. She frantically tried to find the source of the sound as she clung to Naofumi's leg.

"Hey, it's okay. Don't be afraid. This is my friend SHIELD. He helps me around in this crazy world." Naofumi said in a more childlike manner. He was now in charge of raising a broken child. He needed to act as her father-figure, even if it is just a short amount of time.

"Hello, Raphtalia. I am SHIELD. While I am not a living person, I am a living being. Sorry for frightening you." the A.I. said in a gentle voice.

Raphtalia stayed silent.

Naofumi began to build a small fire, enough to light up the area and keep Raphtalia warm.

After putting Raphtalia to sleep by the warm fire, Naofumi had started to think about the game plan. He now had someone to fight with.

"SHIELD, Raphtalia needs a new set of clothes. Can I make something strong and durable without going into towns and villages?"

" Of course, while metal from this world would be faster, there is a way to bring modern technology from your world to this one. You would just need an enormous amount of materials."

"Ok, what do we need?"

After talking to SHIELD about if for a while, they came to the agreement of using spider silk. Turns out, spider silk is five times stronger than steel and is anticipated to be used as body armor instead of kevlar. The only problem comes from collecting the silk. Spider silk is over half as thin as a human hair, and he'll need to get enough to make a full set of clothes that are thick enough to protect from stabs and slashes.

"So how much do I need?"

A fairly large number had appeared in Naofumi's UI. His mind shut down. How was he supposed to get THAT much silk? That would take forever to get.

" On the bright side, the spiders in this world are bigger, so you won't have to spend too much time gathering the silk. And besides, it is an excellent way to have you both level up."

"Great. " Naofumi said with a not so subtle sarcastic voice. He would have to work on that tomorrow. But now, it would be best to give her medicine. "Now, SHIELD, I need you to point out which herbs and plants are best for her disease. Doc, what's her diagnosis?"

"She appears to have a common cold. However, upon further cellular inspection, it is a mutated version of it, the Adenovirus. There is no specific treatment for it, however, getting rid of the symptoms, is usually the best way to get rid of it entirely. Start by gathering those herbs in the patch at 22 degrees east..."

Naofumi had done what SHIELD instructed. From gathering to grinding, to making the medicine, Naofumi took SHIELD word as gospel, the A.I. obviously having access to essential all recorded history. But it is not like SHIELD gave him this power. He had gotten it legitimately through the {Leaf Shield} and {Mushroom Shield}, during his seven-hour walk. After minutes of grinding herbs, Naofumi made a make-shift up of leaves and stored them in his inventory. he would give it to her in the morning when she woke up.

The crackling sound of the fire was the only sound heard in the forest. There would be the occasional sounds of the bushes rustling or wild animals in the distance but he wasn't worried about that. It wasn't something he wanted to think about, but it was the cold, hard truth.

There would be a time where he would eventually run into the other heroes, whether it be during a wave, or just by pure coincidence, it would happen. This is where he needed to be prepared and avoid them at all costs. They were so eager to kill him, that if they found out he was alive, then what is to stop them from doing it again?

He snapped back to reality when Raphtalia was screaming. On high alert, he searched his surroundings to see any sign of hostile monsters but found none. He looked over to Raphtalia to see her eyes closed and reaching out for something. Someone. "NO, Mother! Father! They're dead! They're dead!" she exclaimed loudly into the night as tears streamed down her closed eyes. He rushed over to her to comfort her. He hugged her close and whispered calming words to counter-attack the nightmares plaguing her mind. If she was too loud, someone could hear and suspect the wrong thing. The bushes around them rustled and sprang forth balloons, pill rabbits and other vicious beasts. The light from the fire and the sound of her screams attracted them, like moths to a flame. Quite literally.

In an instant, the monsters were upon the two. Naofumi scooped Raphtalia up in his arms while brandishing DOOM in the other. He didn't need to worry about himself. These monsters couldn't do anything to him. He was worried about Raphtalia. She was so low-level, he feared a couple of consistent attacks would severely injure her. A long night of fighting would fall upon Naofumi as he protected Raphtalia.

The dawn sunrise light was shined through the forest trees. Rays of light had made contact with Raphtalia's closed eyelids. After a few moments, the light had become an annoyance and eventually awoken her. She let out a long yawn as she stretched her muscles. While she had been plagued with recurring nightmares, they stopped for some reason. Usually, they would go on until she woke up, causing her to get very little sleep. But, it was the first time in weeks that she even got any semblance of rest.

She looked around for her new master. She was in a different place in the forest. And her master was nowhere to be found.

A twig snapped off in the distance. Her sensitive raccoon ears picked up the faint sound. She quickly turned her head, her heart racing as she feared for her life. But all the worry was for naught, as it was her new master that appeared.

"Oh, good you're awake. Here eat this and drink this medicine right after. It said it can cure light colds." He said while handing her two cooked fish speared by sticks, and a leaf cup filled with medicine. She looked at the food hesitantly. In the past, when she was offered food, her previous master would slap it out of her hands and laugh as she was forced to eat off the ground like some animal. She was waiting for him to laugh her off and eat it himself, but that never happened. He just held onto it until he asked her again.

"It's for you. Are you not hungry?"

"N-No sir, I-" Her response was interrupted when her stomach growled. A light blush of embarrassment lit her cheeks up as she looked down. If she complained about being hungry, her master would surely beat her until she stopped complaining. That's how it was for her and many other slaves in Melromarc.

"Here take it. You can't fight and God forbid live on an empty stomach." Naofumi said while further extending his arm to give her the food.

She slowly reached her hand out to take the food. Once her small hand grasped the sticks, her fragile hold brought it to her mouth. As if waiting for approval, she looked back to her new master. Her eyes were desperate. It had been long since she ate anything nutritious or flavorful. All she had been fed was stale bread and water. For something as simple as fish to be in her hands, ready to be eaten, was astonishing to her.

When he nodded again to her reassurance, she brought the warm food to her mouth and breathed in its scent. The tangy smell of citrus entered her system as she inhaled. After exhaling, she took a bite of the fish, skin and all.

The flavor had exploded, as her taste buds picked up on the chemical changes. Something inside Raphatlia snapped, causing her to ravage the fish. As soon as she finished the first one, she scarfed down the second. All in under a minute. When she finished she looked around for more, her appetite awoken with a vengeance.

Chuckling, Naofumi spoke to her. "Slow down. You could choke if you don't chew properly. Follow me, I can get you more fish. But first, drink this." He held out the cup once more.

Raphtalia reluctantly took the cup and sipped it. Her eyes went wide as her body immediately rejected the medicine. She gagged at the flavor. "It's so bitter."

Seeing his hard work being thrown away, he narrowed his eyes at Raphtalia. Sternly he told her to drink it. "Good medicine is supposed to taste bitter. Now drink it up." One thing he would have to teach her was discipline. But no physical punishments would be incurred.

"BBBBBBBBLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" The sound of Raphatlia's disgust rang throughout the forest.

{Time Skip}

"This isn't good."

After about two days fighting in the forest, Naofumi had realized something.

According to SHIELD, demi-humans grew up, physically with their levels. The higher the level, the more they matured. This wasn't happening with Raphtalia. Something was stunting her growth. It took him some time to figure it out but Naofumi came to the conclusion that he was the cause of this mishap.

Seeing as he was in essentially an altered timeline, he assumed things had gone differently the way they should have, not getting killed, not being able to attack and not being blessed by Aneko. His past self must have heavily relied on Raphtalia to do all the attacking, leaving her with the greater sum of EXP. But since he was the one attacking, she was progressing at a much slower pace. He needed to let her grow, to fight for herself Because he did not want a little 10-year-old running around during a wave if she didn't know how to fight.

"From now on, You must let her deal the final blow. Or else you will receive most of the EXP". SHIELD explained to Naofumi.

He did as he was told and slowly but surely, Raphtalia had began to increase her level.

"...and this should do it."

It had been 2 weeks since Naofumi had bought Raphtalia. After compounding numerous medicines for Raphtalia, she had been cured of her diseases. While she did still have nightmares, all he had to do was sleep in the same "bed" as her, and they would go away as if he were a dream catcher. Whatever, it worked anyway, so why question something that works?

The spider silk clothes were completed within the first week and a half. Naofumi had to grind nonstop going as far as to hunt spiders down for 48 hours straight. No sleep at all. All the while, he had to protect Raphtallia from stronger monsters while he pinned down the weaker ones, so that she can kill them, farming their EXP for the both of them. Of course, he would let her sleep on his back and take breaks, but he pushed himself to finish that objective. He was a slave owner, but that didn't mean he would use her as a slave. Understand?

Flashback

"KREEEE" The spider's last hiss was let out before Raphtalia brought her blade down to its cephalothorax, instantly killing it.

Naofumi pulled out a sharp cutting knife and began to dissect the spider, extracting its silk. Once he collected the silk, he absorbed the monster into his shield and got notified of a new unlock.

Spider Shield

+25 DEF

+15 AG

+15% Poison DMG

Ability: Wall Climbing- using the spider's setules, The user can climb virtually any surface.

The Spiderman theme song began to play out loud in the forest. Naofumi quickly shut it off to avoid any unwanted attention.

"Stop it SHIELD. You scared Raphtalia." Naofumi pointed out to the frightened girl as she clutched his leg.

" I am sorry Raphtalia. I was trying to startle Naofumi."

She simply nodded, accepting his apology but continued to hold onto Naofumi. She still seemed nervous around him. Slowly but surely she was warming up to him. Not enough to be friendly but enough to not fear him anymore. Normally, what he had gone through would have turned the kindest person into a heartless bastard, but he had Raphtalia. He was dependent on her to keep him sane, and she was dependent on him to survive. Naofumi liked to jokingly call it a mutualistic relationship.

"Great job Naofumi!" Now we only need 1,267 more spiders before we can make Raphtalia's clothes. Keep it up."

Naofumi's face fell. It had been an excruciating 18 hours since he began, and he wanted to stop. Be he couldn't. The longer he spent, the longer Raphtalia would have to endure the cold. Quietly he muttered " I am so sorry Rachnera. I am so sorry." he sobbed out, faking depression.

Seeing her master's face stirred something up inside Raphtalia. She didn't want to see him sad. She looked up to him and tried to get his attention.

"M-Master?" she said tentatively, hoping he won't hit her for speaking out of turn. He didn't. "Yeah?" he responded, signaling for Raphtalia to speak what's on her mind.

"Please don't be sad. If getting me these clothes is making you sad, then don't get them, please." she said with such innocence and sense of worthlessness.

Naofumi's face blanked. A small smile graced his face. He reached out and patted her head. She flinched at the contact, expecting to be hit, but then looked up at him in confusion. "Thank you Raphtalia" He continued to ruffle her hair. "But you need these clothes. They will protect when whenever I won't be able to. I would work very hard to ensure your safety."

It took a while for her master's words to sink in but when they did, she felt something. It was something only her parents had given her. She gazed up at him, eyes sparkling with light. Happiness was seeping into her soul, turning a bucket of black paint, grey, drop by drop. "Master..."

"False, Naofumi. We all know that Miia is best girl. Rachnera was your third pick." SHIELD interrupted.

"Geez, thanks for ruining the moment. And I'll keep it that way, She was number 1. Best snek waifu. But whatever, let's get going." He picked up Raphtalia and put her on his back. She adjusted herself on his back and promptly fell asleep.

It was gonna be a long night.

Flashback ends

That was a week ago. Raphtalia's clothes had taken 2 days to weave. The process took so long because they had to combine the spider silk to make string. Then the string would be woven to fit Raphtalia perfectly. SHIELD had taken her new measurements, as she grew proportionally to her level. Currently, she is level 23. She had the appearance of a seventeen-year-old. She had grown taller, but not enough to surpass Naofumi's new 5'10 height.

Her clothes were a combination of red and brown. He had absolutely no design for her clothes until he remembered seeing the exact same outfit at the Armory shop on his second day. he used that as the base of the design but left the rest up to SHIELD, seeing as he would be designing it to fit Raphtalia and to add any additional protection. At the end of it all, she wore a combat skirt that allowed mobility and looked fabulous on her.

Spider Silk Combat Uniform

+400 DEF

+240 AG

They had some leftover silk that could be used so Naofumi now had a grey cloak. It was light and went really well with Naofumi's mask. Oh, you didn't know he had a mask. Well, he does.

It became apparent that he couldn't be seen in public, as his face was recognizable to anyone in power, at least within the capital. So, Naofumi had SHIELD design a mask that would be made from the metals that Naofumi got as a reward.

Through the weeks, Naofumi had objectives such as "Cure Raphtalia" and "Spider Silk". Those granted him more Nth metal to make Raphtalia, a dagger, then a short sword. Recently she was promoted to a longsword. It was beautifully crafted, the pommel was adorned with a red gem that was found in the mine excavation while looking for spiders. The crossguard was a golden metal, and curved towards the handle, protecting Raphtalia's hand. It was a deadly weapon that with surgical precision, could cut through anything.

Naofumi's mask, on the other hand, wasn't as flamboyant as Raphtalia's sword. Instead of using Nth metal, Naofumi used another piece of ExMachina Metal. This metal would act like nanobots and appear and disappear at will. The mask was a silver color with glowing orange eyes to disguise Naofumi's eye color. The mask also comes with an air filter to counter any poisons or airborne diseases. The eyes are able to see all across the electromagnetic spectrum, giving Naofumi the ability to see in infrared, x-ray and ultraviolet vision. Due to the metal's peculiar nature, it was also able to detect the flow of MP and SP. Along with these, the mask was able to change Naofumi's voice. It was the ultimate mask.

{The Watcher Mask}

250 DEF

Abilities: Night vision, X-ray vision, Voice Distortion, Infrared vision, Air Filtration

Naofumi placed the mask on his face and tried it out. It felt comfortable, it wasn't heavy, and actually felt as light as a feather. He would now be able to go into villages and towns to get supplies. As helpful as SHIELD was, he couldn't continue to live off the land like some nomadic hunter and gatherer. He would eventually need to make himself known. That's why he would take up an alter ego. A way to disguise his identity. He could have SHIELD turn into a vambrace, to get rid of the dead giveaway to his identity.

"Come on Raphtalia. We're going." He called out to his companion. She came out from behind the treeline. "Alright, Master Naofumi." She said with a smile.

For the past 2 weeks, they had been living in the forest, like some family out of a fairytale. This would be their first time out in public. While the mask would draw attention, it would also give him an intimidating aura. It was a win-lose situation.

"SHIELD, directions to the closest village, thank you."

"Directing route to Lute Village... Head northwest for 30 mins."

By the time they had reached the village, the sun was setting. But surprisingly, the townsfolk were still out and about. Men continued to work, while women watched their children play outside. After paying the toll at the gate, the duo walked towards the inn. Even though the walk was for only 30 seconds, the town was small, it felt like an eternity. The anxiety of being found out scared both of them.

"Hey, isn't that..."

"It can't be..."

"Is it really..."

They were surrounded by whispers from the villagers as they increased their walking speed by double. By the time they entered the inn, the entire town was talking about them. Trying to escape any further attention, Naofumi rapidly rang the bell on the front desk.

A voice called out from the back. "I'm coming." A man in his mid-thirties came from the backroom. "How can I..." He never finished his sentence. A look of surprise overtook his face as he saw Naofumi's mask. He then eyed his arms, seeing the bulky gauntlet and the silver shine of the vambrace.

"Can I have a room for two please?" Naofumi asked, taking out a silver coin to pay.

The man was too stunned to respond. Why would someone like him be in a place like this?

"What are you doing here Gauntlet Hero?"

An awkward silence filled the room. Naofumi's face froze, his mind rebooting.

"Huh?"

"You're the Gauntlet Hero aren't you? What are you doing in a small village like this? You should be staying at the Capital!"

"ಠ_ಠ" The pair stayed silent for a while. The innkeeper, feeling uncomfortable, began to speak. " Uh, Sir Hero-"

"Yeah, that's right! I'm the Gauntlet Hero! I'm staying here because it is too late to travel any farther. Can I get a room please!" Naofumi's tone quickened with desperation and he really didn't want to deal with this now.

Stammering, the innkeeper complied. "O-Of course! I'll prepare your room at once!"

By nightfall, the two had settled in. Naofumi had been compounding medicines while Raphtalia was reading a book, he had found in an abandoned backpack. She hadn't learned to read and write the Melromarcian language, but thankfully, SHIELD had been able to teach her and Naofumi together.

When Naofumi had finished he turned the knob on the oil lamp to dim the lights. He turned to see Raphtalia sound asleep on the other bed. Her steady breaths assured Naofumi that she was having a nice and peaceful sleep. Good, she deserved some rest. He rubbed her head between her raccoon ears, relishing the feeling of her soft hair. He was tempted to touch her ears but quickly stopped himself. She needed sleep and should be left alone. Like a father would to his children, Naofumi brought his lips to her forehead and gently kissed her. "Goodnight Raphtalia" he whispered.

He turned around, only missing Raphtalia's blushing face by the slimmest of margins. Her faced lit up like a tree on Christmas, but lucky for her, he didn't see that.

"Master Naofumi. Stop treating me like a child." Raphtalia spoke out, embarrassed and red in the face.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Did I wake you?"

"I was just about to wake up myself."

"Oh, ok."

Silence enveloped the room as the two had nothing to talk about. Building up the courage, Raphtalia broke the ice.

"Master Naofumi, may I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"Why do you need to hide your face?"

Naofumi visibly stiffened. The memories came back, unwillingly bringing Naofumi to another place. He hesitated to answer, and Raphtalia became aware of how loaded the question was.

" I- I am sorry Master Naofumi. I- I didn-"

"It's ok. You were bound to find out anyway." He paused, taking a deep breath before beginning. " As you know, I'm the Shield Hero. I was summoned to this world about a month ago. I didn't really understand this world or how it worked but the others, the others did. Because of this, I was looked down upon. I didn't have anyone to join my party until a woman volunteered. She acted nice, but she was just a cold-hearted bitch. She robbed me of my money and falsely accused me of rape. By a vote of 3 to 0, I was sentenced to death. My execution would be at sunset, in the meantime, I was thrown into the dungeon, and tortured. I was then publicly killed off as a demon. Slandered, Slaughtered, I never had the chance to prove my innocence." He stopped, the negative emotions resurfacing. The anger and hatred filled his eyes, turning them dark, cold and empty.

"I hide myself to protect you. If the other three heroes or the King found out about me being alive, they would hunt us down and kill me again. Then, seeing how demi-humans are treated in this godforsaken country, you would be killed, if they feel merciful and if not..." He left the sentence hanging, leaving Raphtalia to draw up conclusions. She was extremely attractive, and (looked like) an adult. Surely they wouldn't think twice about selling her off to some rich snob noble who put the whole ugly bastard tag to shame. He didn't want to think about what they would do.

Raphtalia was noticeably shaken. She felt ashamed for asking him to tell her about such a traumatic experience. In many ways, she and he were the same. Both had a bright view of the world, only to have it ripped away from them. Both were put in horrendous situations, and both had met by fate. She steeled herself and spoke up.

"Master Naofumi, I promise to be your sword forever. Whoever it may be, whoever we fight, The Heroes, God or the Devil, I will stay by your side. You came to me in my time of need, so I will stay beside you in your times of need." She spoke with such passion and loyalty. Naofumi looked up, surprise evident on his face.

"But, I made you my slave. Surely you want to be free don't you." He questioned. In many of the anime and manga he used to read, the slave would always (usually) want to be free. And the master would release them. Hell, even the protagonist would be against slavery in the first place. He wasn't some hero. He was a bad guy for forcing others to help him fight.

" I am nothing without you Master Naofumi. I wouldn't even be alive without your help. You raise me up from nothing and made me who I am now"

"I bought you 3 weeks ago..."

"I will always be grateful for what you have done. You lost your faith in this world, your trust. if slavery is the only way to pay back such kindness and prove my loyalty to you, then I would be your slave forever. You are my Hero, Master Naofumi, and I'll never let you forget it."

Tears began to build up in Naofumi's eyes. Quickly, he wiped them before they could fall. He then enveloped Raphtalia in a hug. The act had surprised Raphtalia, as her tail stood on end. But getting over the shock of the hug, she wrapped her arms around him, her tail swishing back and forth rapidly.

He pulled back from the hug and spoke. " Thank you Raphtalia. I needed to hear that. Now, let's get some sleep. We have a lot of work tomorrow."

"Alright Master Naofumi, Goodnight."

"Goodnight Raphtalia. SHIELD set an alarm for 7:00 am."

"Alarm set. Goodnight Naofumi."

Naofumi closed his eyes and entered the dream realm.

* * *

(When Naofumi returned)

Aultcray knew he fucked up.

A week ago, he had conspired with the Three heroes church to eliminate the Devil of the Shield, and it was successful. But what followed was troubling. The Three Heros Church had found out there was a Shadow in Melromarc and quickly tried to stop her from reporting to his wife. They had sent their best agents to stop her but none of them had come back to report a mission complete. The Three Heroes Church had concluded that the agents failed to perform their tasks. In a rare showcase of trust and loyalty, the church had informed the king of the predicament.

He knew that by now Mirelia would be enraged when she heard the news. He and Malty were most likely going to be executed for high treason. If not, then the queen would have more sinister plans in store for the two of them.

He knew his wife better than anyone. While she wasn't as great as a strategist as he was, she was still one of the most cunning, ruthless people in this world nonetheless. When she wanted something, she would get it. No matter what the cost. And if it was his head she wanted, by God, he would remove it from his shoulders himself.

But it was worth it. He would go done as the king who killed the devil of the shield. It would certainly ignite a war with those filthy mongrels. Looking back now, he knew the church's new prophecy wouldn't hold any meaning to those demi-humans. They were vicious, dim-witted, bloodthirsty abominations that knew no love. If his death was the price for the demi-human genocide, then so be it.

But then a premonition had arrived in Aultcray's mind. No. Surely Mirelia wouldn't sentence her own daughter to such a fate. But Mireliea wasn't in the best conditions now, so she could, in fact, think of something so cruel. He needed to fix this. He needed to make sure Malty would never be sent to his brother.

(A/N: Is the Pig King his brother. It is a monarchy, so I assume that they are at least related in a sense. I haven't read all of the web Novel so I really don't know. But whatever, in this story they are.)

He needed the help of one of the Heroes. Someone who would fight for the right cause, and is misled easily. The Spear hero was a good choice, but Malty was a member of his party. He wanted her to stay as far away from Faubrey as possible. The Sword Hero? No, no, he would only do something if it gave him strength. The only choice left was the Bow Hero. Master Itsuki, was his name. Good, he will suffice.

He looked to one of his servants and spoke in his proud voice. "Have a messenger bring a summons to Master Itsuki. I would like to have a word with him." He commanded.

"Yes, your Majesty." The servant then left the throne room.

{-Time Skip-}

When Itsuki had heard he was summoned by the King, he arrived as fast as he could. His party was about to set off from the capital as their party level had reached a certain point, where none of the monsters around the area would be of any use. It was a good thing that the messenger had stopped them before they left.

Itsuki opened the door and closed it behind him. "You called, my King?"

"Yes, I have, please leave us be." he had addressed the nobles and the servants in the throne room. Once everyone had left, the King began to talk to Itsuki.

"Master Itsuki, would you say you are a man of justice?"

"Of course I am."

"Would you say that you stand up for basic human rights?"

"Without a doubt."

"Do you believe dictators should be brought to justice?"

"Absolutely!"

"Would you kill them to avenge the millions under their oppression?"

"I fight for truth, justice, and the American way."

"What's America?" The king asked, cutting the tension in the atmosphere.

"It's nothing. Yes, I would kill such a terrible person."

"Good, because I have a mission for you. If you accept, I will forever be in your debt as well as reward you handsomely." The king added in monetary incentives, just in case Itsuki needed more persuasion.

"What is it? What must I do?" Eager to gain the favor of the King, Itsuki asked him with excessive enthusiasm. Not only was Itsuki a self-righteous crusader fighting for the "Holyland" but he was an extreme sycophant.

"There is a king who rules over a land called Faubrey. He had been in power for many decades and rules with an iron fist. Faubrey is the largest nation in the world and has the largest military with advanced weaponry. If they don't get what they want, they threaten us smaller countries with invasion, until we appease them. His sights have unfortunately fallen unto Melromarc. He wants my daughter Malty."

"That's awful. He needs to be stopped! I'll go right at on-" Itsuki was already walking away when he was stopped by the king.

" Wait, Master Itsuki. It gets worse." Aultcray had put on a mask of deep sorrow as he continued to tell the story. " He is a sadistic man. Always bring women into his castle and torturing them. He derives his carnal pleasures from such vile acts. It is said that he has raped and tortured a little under 10,000 women. And now he plans to do the same with my daughter." At this point, Aultcray was crying. The thought of Malty going through such torment was unbearable. He loved his daughter with all of his heart. No father would stand for such actions.

When Aultcray had looked back up at Itsuki, he saw a gleam in the hero's eye. It was a determined glint that stood out in his eyes.

He got him. Hook, line, and sinker.

A look of anger and retribution was plastered onto his face. " I will avenge the victims of this tyrant's rule. I will bring down the hammer of justice upon this sinner. I will go now!"

"Please wait, Master Itsuki. It takes well over a month to travel there by cart. After you three heroes fight off the waves and collect your reward, then you can travel to Faubrey. But please, stay here until the 2nd wave has been repelled." He hadn't expected Itsuki to immediately rush for the door, already preparing himself to kill his older brother. But if there was something that needed to happen, it was for the heroes to remain in Melromarc. The longer they stay, the more likely they'll grow accustomed to the environment.

If anything, the summoning of the Cardinal heroes wasn't to spite the world and his wife. It was indeed a power play, but only for a defensive purpose. Should any other country try to wage war on Melromarc or his family, he would have the might of the heroes, protecting the ones he loved. It was the greatest defense this world could ask for. (A/N: Oh, the irony...)

The King became lost in thought after Master Itsuki closed the throne room doors. He knew his plan was crazy. He knew that he was possibly going to end up dead at the end of it all. But that didn't matter to him. As long as his family was out of harm's way, then he would happily die.

They say there is nothing more dangerous than a desperate man who has nothing to lose.

In time, the world would see if the saying holds.

* * *

HEY! ISEKAI QUARTET 2 CAME OUT. FUCK YEAH. Here's a (long) omake on it. Minor Spoiler for you anime-only fans.

* * *

"Come in~"

The door slid open, flashing a bright light that poured into the room. Everyone looked away, besides the undead denizens of Nazarick.

When the light died down, three figures were seen standing in the doorway. It was weird after the light had dimmed, their faces were overtaken by shadow.

Everyone in the room waited with bated breath, anxious to know who the transfers students were.

Seconds of silence has passed before the self-proclaimed goddess spoke up. "Uwah, are these guys ok? They look kinda dead."

For once, everyone was agreeing with Aqua. The people standing at the doorway were covered in bruises, lacerations, and overall signs of defeat. They were swaying on their feet, their bodies about to fall over any minute. However, they fell sooner rather than later.

"ARGH! Move goddamnit!" A rough voice echoed from the hallway as the bodies fell backward.

Stepping over their unconscious bodies was a young man who looked about 20 years old. His hard emerald eyes held in rage at the momentary annoyance that was the Three Heroes. He was followed by 2 other people before closing the door, leaving the three Stooges out in the hallway.

"Master Naofumi, shouldn't we at least heal them instead of leaving them out there?" questioned the taller, demi-human. Her brown hair and pink eyes stood out from the rest, as an undeniably beautiful woman. A sword was sheathed in a metal scabbard at her right hip. The pink jewel gleamed in the light, causing many to admire its beauty.

"Well, it's their fault for jumping into that portal as soon as they got up. They should now that they can't beat Kyo and yet, they chased after him. I say good riddance."

The now dubbed Naofumi was wearing an adventurer's getup. Metal plates were protecting his vitals while strong, taut leather protected his legs. A small metal shield with a green gem in the middle was stuck on his right forearm.

"Yeah, Spear guy is so annoying!" The third member shouted in an adorable voice. Greet, it looks like the class had another loli to worry about.

"Yeah, he is." Naofumi said, head patting Filo as a reward for uncovering the truth, known from the very beginning. He looked at Roswaal, sending him a puzzled look.

"What's with the clown?" he says to no one in particular.

The entire class went silent. They stared at Naofumi with wide eyes. They can't believe he said it.

HE SAID IT ON THE FIRST DAY! The entire class seemed to explain mentally.

"I am your new teacher Naofumi~kun. Why don't you introduce yourselves~?" The "clown" had said, with no traces of hurt or offense taken.

"No thanks, we need to get home, err, I mean chase after someone, Can we leave?" Naofumi asked Roswaal.

"I'm afraid, that attendance is mandatory. Any truancies will result in a loss of privileges." the teacher of class 2 said menacingly. A dark aura began to surround him, the lights dimmed for dramatic effect.

"Ugh, I graduated high school already."

"Master Naofumi, why don't we give it a shot, it can't harm us." Raphtalia voiced her opinion.

"Fine, I'll start then. My name is Naofumi Iwatani, I'm the Shield Hero. This is Raphtalia, she is my slave, but I treat her like my daughter and fina-" He was cut off by a yell in the back. Subaru had walked up to the front and did his usually white-knight routine. "Hey man, you need to treat women with respect!"

Naofumi just stared back, in disgust. Not another Motoyasu. "If you let me finish, I was go-"

Meanwhile, when Naofumi was arguing with Subaru, Kazuma and Darkness were arguing as well.

"Let me go Kazuma, I need to-" Darkness's eyes were dilated, her cheeks flushed red and her breathing growing heavier with every pant.

"NO, YOU DON'T! ONLY A SADIST WOULD WANT YOU AS A SLAVE! BESIDES, HE TREATS HER GOOD, DIDN"T YOU HEAR!" Kazuma shouted, trying desperately to keep Darkness from making a scene.

" Naofumi! How is she your slave?" Darkness, completely ignoring Kazuma, demanded, bringing Naofumi out of his argument with Subaru. "Huh? Oh, she has this crest that punishes her if she disobeys, but I don't-"

"ARE YOU GOING TO ENSLAVE US ALL?"

.

.

.

"What?" He asked in disbelief.

"No one settles for one slave. You even have two, both of which are female. Did you come here to imprison us all? To get the males to do your dirty work while you force yourself onto us women? You can break my body (please do) but you will never break my spirit. What lewd torture will we face? What vulgar acts of pornography will you force us to do? No matter what, I will never surrender so please torture me as much as you want. I can feel your eyes, hunger, wanting, SO PLEASE TELL ME-!"

A karate chop to her head brought her out of her lust-filled rant. Her hands went to her head, as he fell to the floor, writhing in pain, but moaning in pleasure.

Kazuma, being fed up with her perverted antics, decided to end it before things took a permanent turn for the worse. He grabbed her by the back of her chest plate and dragged her out of the classroom. Before leaving, Kazuma turned to Naofumi, his eyes empty only holding embarrassment and regret.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." With those words, he closed the door, disappearing into the hallway. Everyone thought that was was the last of it, however...

"Haa, Haa, being treated like luggage, it's amazing! You know how to rile a woman up Kazuma. Tie me up Kazuma, TIE ME UP AND TAKE ME!"

Her words echoed throughout the hallway, sending shivers up everyone's spine. Naofumi's face stared emptily (ಠ_ಠ) as he looked to Raphtalia and Filo.

"Well, we tried. Portal Shield!"

The three of them flashed out of sight, leaving the classroom. Seeing them disappear caused the classroom to riot.

"HEY, HOW COME THEY GET TO LEAVE!?" Aqua shouted indignantly.

Roswaal responded. "They'll be back~." Holding up three fingers, then counting down from three to one. At exactly one, they reappeared back in front of the class.

"OH COME ON!"

* * *

A/N: Did I mean to take 5 (6) months to type this up? No. Did I procrastinate? Yes. Am I sorry? Yeah, but life just got complicated.

I will always put school and/or work in front of my hobbies. And seeing that those two are taking up more of my time than usual, the updates will take a much longer time to get out. But this means I can take my time and make sure everything is well written. I don't know what I was thinking when I said I would get a chapter out per week.

I will try to update this story once a week. 4 days of writing, 2 days of editing, publish.

I will try to update this story once a week. 4 days of writing, 2 days of editing, publish.

I will try to update this story once a week. 4 days of writing, 2 days of editing, publish.

I WILL TRY TO UPDATE THIS STORY ONCE A WEEK. 4 DAYS OF WRITING,2 DAYS OF EDITING, PUBLISH.

So that was a fucking lie.

This whole experience has made me appreciate the work that other fanfic authors put into their stories. Thank you for the time you take out of your day to entertain us plebeians.

Basket in a Nutcase: When I started typing this chapter, I was thinking about giving him the curse series when he landed, but something told me to not do it. I was going to listen to that something but then your comment forced me too. XD. Man, after reading your review, I was like: "I gotta do it now. I HAVE to do it."

Tell me what you think in the reviews. Is SHIELD another Deus ex Machina? He is? Well... I don't give a fuck. Is my story deteriorating faster than Francium-223's half-life? (22 minutes) It is? Well, I don't give a fuck. Does it seem rushed or long-winded? Are you guys ok with chapters this long or are the standard 3-8k words good for you? I want to hear about your preferences.

I'm going to take some time off to think of a storyline. All this time, I have just been typing what I think would be good. I'll probably take a month to decide where this story is going but I won't give up on this story.

Make sure to charge your phone, finish your homework, get 8 hours of sleep (I never do), and eat your nuclear pasta.

-FF1987


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